The New Intern
by accioswiftgames
Summary: Tessa Gray moved all the way to London for an internship at the famous company, The Shadowhunters. Here, she meets the incorrigible Will Herondale, among others. (Modern AU with fluff, but there will be an actual conflict not to worry)
1. The First Meeting

_Breathe in, breathe out._

It was Tessa's first day as an intern in the famous company, The Shadowhunters. She had moved all the way to London to do this job, but it wasn't actually difficult to let go of her life in New York. Her parents had died in a car accident when she was little, and her aunt, who had been taking care of her, had just died of a heart attack. All she had left was her cousin, Nate. He had always been like a big brother to Tessa, and she missed him now. But he had his own job and girlfriend back home, and she couldn't have asked him to come along with her.

She saw the office -which was called the Institute- as she turned a corner. Tessa held her breath in amazement. It was a huge church-like building with spires and it seemed to be at least a hundred years old. It was almost as if it had jumped out from one of the books that she loved. She stopped in front of its metal gates and just as she was about to push them, they opened for her.

Tessa walked through the big double doors. Her shoes clicked on the polished marble floor as she made her way to the receptionist desk, which was where the altar of the church would have been.

The lady behind the desk gave her a warm smile. "Good morning, what can I do for you?"

Tessa smiled at her nervously. "Hi, I'm Theresa Gray. I- um, well-"

"Oh, you're the new intern, right?" she asked, smiling sympathetically.

"Yeah," Tessa replied, beginning to feel less nervous.

"Well, just follow me then."

She got up from her desk with a card attached to a lanyard in her hand. Walking swiftly towards the elevators, she gestured for Tessa to follow her. Despite the old frame around the elevator doors, the elevators themselves were brand new and modern. With a ding, the doors opened and they walked in. The lady pressed the button for the 3rd floor and they ascended in silence.

As the doors opened, she gave Tessa the card in her hand and gave her directions.

"...and when you get there, just knock," she finished, seemingly satisfied with herself for relying all that information. "Now, you better get going. She'll be expecting you," she said as she gently shoved Tessa out of the elevator.

"Thank you. Wait, who am I meeting, exactly?"

Before the receptionist could reply, however, the elevator doors closed as they had been open for much too long. She heard a muffled reply, but it was unintelligible. With a sigh, Tessa turned to go through the winding corridors, as Sophie had instructed her to do. She picked her way carefully, trying to not get lost in the almost identical corridors of the Institute. All the doors were glass, and they seemed out of place in the old corridors made primarily out of wood. Hanging on the wall were empty torches which were probably used for lighting at one point in time. Now, there were bright lights on the ceiling, which were also out of place like the doors.

As she was looking around her for any clues as to where she was supposed to go now according to the receptionist's instructions, a heavy body bumped into her. She looked at the man standing before her in surprise, having not heard him coming due to the carpeted floors. Before she could react further, he gave a huff and and walked off, grumpily shouting, "Watch where you're going!"

Tessa looked after him in shock for being treated so rudely, but any remark she was about to say disappeared with him as he turned around corner. She turned back around firmly in indignation and decided to turn left.

Finally, Tessa reached the door which was supposedly where Sophie had tried to direct her to. She knocked a couple of times, and a distinctly female voice answered, "Come in."

Tessa slowly opened the door and stepped in. The room, just like the rest of the Institute, was a mix of old and new. The furniture were all modern and was an old fireplace that was currently empty as it was summer time. A bright lamp hung down from the ceiling, its light illuminating the whole room clearly. The desk was glass and stainless steel, and on top of it were stacks of papers and stationery. There was another tiny desk lamp. The woman sitting behind the desk seemed young, but her eyes carried much more wisdom. She stood up as Tessa entered, and Tess immediately felt her presence as a leader. She was tiny, much shorter than Tess, who was already taller compared to most girls. Her thick brown hair was in a tight bun and her small face was not unkind. Her dark eyes were bright and soft, releasing some of the tension that Tessa felt.

She held out her tiny hand. "Hello, my name is Charlotte Branwell. You may call me Charlotte," she said with a smile. Tessa took her hand, which was surprisingly strong.

"Hi Charlotte, I'm Theresa Gray. But please, call me Tessa."

Charlotte's smiled widened momentarily before she sat back down. She gestured for Tessa to sit in one of the chairs in front of the desk.

"Well, Tessa," she began, folding her hands in front of her, "I'm very glad you came here to work with us. As I understand, you had to move from New York to accept this internship. Well hopefully, we will soon be able to offer you a full-time job here."

Tessa nodded timidly. Charlotte smiled again. "It's okay to be nervous, Tessa. It's your first job, so it is perfectly understandable," she added. Tessa already liked her boss. She was beginning to let go of some of her nervousness. She gave a smile to Charlotte.

"Good. So, first things first. I'm sure you know what we Shadowhunters do, but let me give you a detailed recap.

"You may know Shadowhunters as an elite group of people who have excellent skills in different areas," she explained. Tessa nodded. Everyone knew that the Shadowhunters were talented and it was incredibly hard to be a member if you weren't born into a Shadowhunter family.

"What you might not know is that one of the main areas is fighting. It may seem odd, but trust me when I say that it is needed. If you do get the job, you will know more about this," Charlotte added. She paused as if to let the information sink into Tessa's brain.

Tessa had to fight the urge to ask her about it, but she knew it would be of no use, and she had to make a good impression. Instead, she asked, "What are the other skills?"

"Oh, music, arts, literature..." Charlotte trailed off with a wave of her hand.

Tessa had perked up at the mention of literature and was eager to find out more when she had the chance later on.

"Anyways, as I was saying, they have many skills. However, our company does not only consist of these members, but there also are many different departments in which non-members can work. There's the Department of Education -which is responsible for teaching the Shadowhunters-, a Law Department -which makes sure that all Shadowhunters follow the Accords or rules-, and many more."

Tessa widened her eyes in wonder. This company was almost like its own government. _No wonder the Institute is so gigantic,_ Tessa thought. _It had to fit all these people. _

"You, my dear Tessa," Charlotte continued, "will be my personal assistant. You'll be learning a lot, and hopefully enough by the end of your internship that we can hire you immediately."

Tessa let out the breath she was holding. She was infinitely relieved that she would be working for Charlotte, instead of working in a completely new environment. She gave Charlotte a grin and Charlotte returned it with a smile.

"So, the first thing you'll need to do is to sort out these-"

Charlotte was interrupted by the door being swung open none too gently. A man -the same man who had bumped into her earlier- was standing in the doorway, a wicked grin on his face.

"Charlotte," he began airily, "I thought you should know that Church has taken it upon himself to shred the couch in the library into tiny little pieces of fabric and fluff. Of course, I-" he stopped, as his eyes noticed Tessa's presence for the first time. "Wait, have we ever met before?" he asked rather rudely.

Tessa raised her eyebrows. "If by 'met' you mean 'crashed into in the corridor without anything close to an apology', then yes, I suppose so," she replied.

Without missing a beat, he replied, "I guess our 'meeting' really had a big impression on you for you to remember it in detail. Of course, it always happens with every girl who lays their eyes on me."

Tessa snorted. "So they're all appalled by your unfortunate character?"

He opened his mouth to argue again, but was cut off by Charlotte. "Alright, enough you two," she said in distress. Tessa felt a twinge of guilt for Charlotte, but it was overwhelmed by her immediate loathing of this man.

Charlotte took a deep breath as Tessa and the man continued to glare at each other unyieldingly. "Why don't you introduce yourself?" Charlotte asked the man.

"Fine," he replied, straightening his posture. He took a few large steps toward Tessa and held out his hand. Tessa looked at his outstretched hand like it was a turtle that was playing guitar in a peruvian folk band. "What I'm doing is trying to introduce myself to you by offering you my hand. You should respond by shaking it," he said with a smirk.

Tessa felt the blood rise to her cheeks and stood up, glaring at him with as much hatred as she could muster. She took his hand, which was surprisingly warm and comforting. Her eyes softened a bit. "I'm Theresa Gray. Call me Tessa," she replied curtly.

"Hello, Tessa," he said with an almost genuine smile, which took Tessa by surprise. "I'm William Herondale. Please call me Will."

* * *

**Hello! I hope you like this so far. I'm not sure if something like this has been done before, but yeah. This is a Wessa fanfic by the way, if you haven't noticed.**

**Also, by writing this I'm kinda procrastinating from updating my other doctor who fanfic. *sigh* i'm sorry.**

**So because of that, I don't know if I should cont****inue this. I'll continue it if I get at least 1 review. I don't really wanna give an ultimatum, but if there's no interest then I'm not gonna continue this. (It doesn't even have to be a good review. I appreciate all input and criticism!)**

**Anyways, THANK YOU FOR READING! Please Follow, Favorite, and/or Review! :)**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own The Infernal Devices.**


	2. Meet Everyone Else

As Tessa sorted out the stack of papers given to her by Charlotte, her mind couldn't help wandering back to her first meeting with Will Herondale. He really was rude and insufferable, and she wondered if he had any friends at all. He was taller than Tessa was -even though she was wearing short heels- and he was skinny, but muscular. It must've been the result of fighting. He had eyes that were a peculiar shade of dark blue, like iolite gemstones, which were framed by long, thick lashes. His jet black hair was messy and his lips were-

Tessa shook her head. What was wrong with her? She had been unfocused for the past couple of hours. She stared at the paper in her hand and sorted it onto one of the growing stacks in front of her. She was sitting in a black leather chair behind a glass desk, which was almost completely covered in papers and files. There wasn't much more in the room, besides a rug and a small empty bookshelf. Tessa had nearly jumped in glee in seeing space for her to put some of her books. She was in a small room connected to Charlotte's office. It wasn't quite her own office room, since there was no door to separate her from Charlotte, but she had enough privacy. But so far, her job hadn't been very exciting or interesting in anyway. She was beginning to think that maybe all the hype around The Shadowhunters was just based off of rumours. She glanced back at the stacks of papers surrounding her and sighed heavily. Tessa closed eyes and threw her head back, taking deep breaths.

"Enjoying your job, Ms. Gray?" said a smug voice.

Tessa reluctantly opened her eyes, glaring at the speaker. "Yes, very much. Thank you for asking, Mr. Herondale," she replied coldly.

Will came around the table, dragging a chair with him. He was wearing gray slacks and a light blue shirt, his top button undone. His sleeves were rolled up to his elbow and his hair was as messy as it had been before. He plopped down on his chair and took a piece of paper from one of the stacks, glanced at it and at the remaining stacks, and placed it neatly in one of the piles. Tessa raised her eyebrows in surprise. Was he really helping her?

"What? Am I surprising you, Tess?" he smirked at her.

Tessa looked away and focused on the stack of papers. An unexpected warmth flowered inside her. _Tess,_ she echoed in her mind. No one had ever called her that. It sounded nice rolling off his tongue, his silky voice made it sound beautiful.

"Tessa?"

She snapped out of her daze to find looking at her in puzzlement, tilting his head slightly.

"Are you okay?" he asked, real concern lacing his voice.

"Yeah, I'm just a little... distracted, I guess," she answered.

A wicked grin appeared on his face. "Distracted by my charm and exceedingly good looks?" Tessa opened her mouth angrily to protest, but Will held up his hand to stop her. "It's completely normal. I'm actually surprised you haven't fainted yet considering our proximity to each other."

Tessa gave a huff of indignation and turned back to her seemingly endless task of sorting papers. After a few moments of silence in which both of them were absorbed in the act of scanning and sorting documents, she saw Will get up from the corner of her eye. She continued working and only looked up when he was a few steps away from the entryway to Charlotte's office.

"Thank you, Will," she said, her voice loud in the completely silent room.

Will turned his head back and gave her a genuine smile. "No problem, Tess," he replied, his eyes softening.

* * *

Charlotte came back about half an hour later after dealing with the business with the cat named Church. She took a look at Tessa, who was drowning in piles of paper cream-colored files, and widened her eyes. "Goodness, I never knew there were that many papers. Come, Tessa. You've done more than enough."

Tessa gladly stepped away from the neat piles and walked over to Charlotte's office. She stood over her table, signing something. Then she straightened up and walked towards the door. "Come with me," she said, motioning for Tessa to follow her.

As they walked through the nearly identical corridors, Charlotte explained that there was a meeting and Tessa had to join.

"I don't understand. I'm new. Why would I need to go to a meeting? What will it be about?"

Charlotte gave her a suspicious smile. "You'll see. In any case, going to this meeting would be much better for your internship than just stacking papers all day," she said with a smile.

Tessa nodded in agreement. She walked quickly through the corridors, looking down whenever someone passes by. It wasn't that she was shy, she was just... not in the mood to meet new people. Or so she told herself.

They finally arrived at the meeting room, which was more like a living room than anything else. The floors were carpeted and there were a few couches and chairs clustered around a coffee table. Some seemed old and vintage, while others were new and modern. There was an idle fireplace near the couches as well, for cold winter nights. The windows on the far side of the room were as tall as the room itself, and the curtains were a velvety material. The sky outside was blue with a tint of grey and the sun was nowhere to be seen. A bright chandelier hanging in the middle of the room illuminated the place.

Inside the room, there were already a few people lounging on the couches. Among them was Will, who was sitting lazily on one of the sofas, his arm casually slung across the back of a cushion. Next to him was another boy who looked the same age as Will. He was also leaning back against the sofa, but unlike Will, who looked careless and unorganized, this boy was calm and composed. His position seemed graceful and his face serene and kind. His pale face was all angles and it attracted attention. But what caught Tessa's eye was the silver. His long eyelashes were silver, his irises were silver, and his neatly combed hair was silver.

He smiled politely at Tessa as their eyes locked.

Leaning on the wall next to the fireplace was a boy who looked a bit older than Will. He was also built and muscular, but unlike Will, he was large and broad-shouldered. He shared the same emerald green eyes as another boy who was sitting on a cushioned chair.

The boy by the fireplace gave a small nod to Tessa when he saw her. His eyes then glazed around the room lazily, lingering on a girl who was sitting cross-legged on the carpeted floor. She bore a striking resemblance to Will. Her dark blue eyes sparkled and danced excitedly around the room, and there was a ghost of a smile on her lips. Her loosely braided hair was the same jet black as Will's. She gave a big smile to Tessa when her eyes caught sight of her.

The last person Tessa saw in the room was a girl who was almost ridiculously beautiful. She was sitting up straight on a tiny chair, her blond hair falling around her shoulders in loose curls. She looked at the rest of the room as if they were all inferior creatures. She immediately had a bad feeling about this girl. Even as she caught sight of Tessa, she didn't acknowledge her presence in any way.

Charlotte cleared her throat. "Alright, everyone. I'd like you all to meet Tessa Gray."

Tessa smiled awkwardly as everyone turned to look at her. She looked at the only face she knew in the room besides Charlotte's, and he was smirking at her with his eyebrows raised in amusement.

"You're a bit plain, aren't you?" asked the snobbish blonde girl plainly.

Tessa's mouth opened slightly in shock. Everyone else in the room sighed and Charlotte groaned.

The girl who was probably related to Will scolded her. "Jessie!"

"Please excuse our friend," said a calming voice. Tessa turned to see that the source of the voice was the silver-haired boy. He smiled at her apologetically. "She tends to say whatever crosses her mind. Though her words aren't always true," he told her, getting up from the sofa. He walked over to her and held out a hand. "I'm James Carstairs, by the way. But please, call me Jem."

As Tessa shook his hand, the girl with black hair leapt up. "I'm Cecily Herondale," she stated, her hand outstretched. Tessa took it and asked, "Are you related to Will?"

Cecily looked at her in surprise. "Why, yes, I am. I'm his twin sister," she replied. Squinting her eyes slightly at Tessa, she asked, "You've met Will then?"

Tessa felt her cheeks redden for no reason as she nodded and looked away to hide it.

The two other boys came up to her.

"I'm Gideon Lightwood," said the boy who was sitting on a chair. Gideon had thick sandy-blond hair and he was very muscular. He nudged the boy next to him when there was a short silence.

"Oh yeah, and I'm Gabriel Lightwood," stated the boy who had leaned by the fireplace. He was taller than Gideon, and probably everyone else in the room, for that matter. His face was sharp and handsome.

Tessa turned to look at the blonde girl who Cecily had called "Jessie". She was still in the same position, her nose up in the air.

"Don't mind Jessamine," Cecily said, rolling her eyes. "She's always like that with everyone."

Tessa smiled at her. "So," she said, turning to Charlotte, "What's the meeting about?"

There was a flash of surprise in Charlotte's face, as if she just remembered about it, but she quickly recovered. "I just thought that maybe knowing people your age would help you feel… more comfortable here."

Tessa was genuinely surprised and pleased at the same time. She called them all there… to make her feel welcome?

Tessa gave her a grateful smile. "Thank you, Charlotte," she replied genuinely.

"Well, I'm bored," said a familiar voice.

Tessa shifted her head slightly and caught sight of Will, exaggerating a yawn. "What are supposed to do now? Play games in the playground? Text each other personal secrets?"

Charlotte didn't seem hurt or shocked in any way by Will. She just sighed tiredly. "I'm just introducing her to you all. I'm not asking you to be giggling 12-year-old girls."

"Whatever," Will replied. He swiftly got up and walked over to where they were all standing. "So, what shall we do now?" His eyes glinted wickedly. "Shall we teach Tessa how to fight?"

Tessa felt her eyes widen as her mouth dropped. "Teach me _what_?"

"Goodness Will, you're worse than a giggling 12-year-old girl," Jessamine snorted. She scrunched up her nose. "I could never understand why you all enjoy fighting so much. Especially you, Cecily. It's _so _not lady-like to fight," she reprimanded, tossing her blonde curls back behind her shoulder. Cecily looked like she was using every ounce of her self-control no to slap Jessamine. "Maybe Tessa should come with me and learn how to dress properly instead," Jessamine continued. Her eyes scanned Tessa critically, and Tessa had to fight the urge to cover her body with her hands, as silly as it seemed. "I know exactly what to do to-"

"Actually, I think Will's idea is great," Charlotte interjected. Tessa held back a groan. "It'll help you understand Shadowhunters better. Besides, it's better than stacking papers right?"

She turned back to the group of people standing in front of her, composing her facial expression to mask her fear and anxiety. She didn't see how fighting would make her understand Shadowhunters, but Charlotte was right. It was definitely better than stacking papers. Tessa took a deep breath. "Alright then. Tell me what to do."

Will grinned at her. "We're definitely up for some fun, Tess."

* * *

**This is probably the longest chapter I've ever written for a fanfic. I usually write short chapters so YAY for longer chapters.**

**So I know there's actually not much happening here. Just little hints of Wessa and mostly character introductions. **

**I love writing this fanfic, because as _bow down to me peasants _put it, "I need as much Wessa in my life as possible." So I'll hopefully update at least once a week. Anyways, that's all for now I guess.**

**Please Follow, Favorite, and/or Review! :)**

**DISCLAIMER: I (sadly) do not own The Infernal Devices**


	3. Waffles

Tessa had finished her first week at The Shadowhunters. She had become friends with Cecily, Jem, Gabriel, Gideon, and even Jessamine. And then there was Will. He was so aggravating that sometimes Tessa had to fight the extremely strong urge to slap him in the face. She tried to one time. But he had caught her hand and clucked his tongue and disapproval.

It was a Saturday and Tessa was relaxing in her apartment by herself, re-reading Great Expectations on her white couch. Her small apartment had one bedroom with a bathroom connected, a kitchen, and a living room. It wasn't much, but it was enough for Tessa. She looked at the clock hanging on the white newly painted wall. She had exactly 30 minutes before she had to leave for work. Aside from her internship at The Shadowhunters, she also had a job at a waffle place in Oxford Street. It was a nice little place next to the exit of the Bond Street Underground station. She had applied in the week before starting her internship, when she just moved in. Today would be her first day, and she definitely didn't want to be late.

Reluctantly, Tessa rose to her feet and got dressed for work. She put on a grey tanktop and a baby blue cardigan, with a pair of black leggings. She took a look at herself in the mirror and decided to put her hair up into a ponytail. Grabbing her bag and keys, Tessa left her apartment.

She stood in front of the waffle place and checked her watch. It was 9.35, and they probably had to start getting ready for opening time. She looked around for a way into the tiny place. It wasn't really a restaurant or a store. It was just a counter with a kitchen behind it. As she glanced around, a girl came up next to her.

"The store doesn't open until 10.00," she told Tessa. She looked at the girl, who was about the same height as Tessa herself. She was very pretty, with her soft features and jet nut eyes. But Tessa couldn't help but stare at the silvery ridged scar that stretched across the left side of her face from the corner of her mouth to her temple. It distorted her face slightly, but she was still pretty.

Tessa realized that she had been staring for too long. Her expression was one of self-consciousness, but there was a sliver of anger as well. Guilt pierced through Tessa as she realized how horrible it must've been for her to stare at the girl's scar.

"Um, yeah I know. I actually work there," Tessa stated, trying to recover from her embarrassment. "Well, if I figure out a way to get inside," she muttered.

The girl's expression softened and she offered a smile. "Oh, you're the new girl. Well, I'm Sophie," she said, holding out her hand.

"Tessa," she replied, giving a smile of her own and shaking Sophie's hand.

* * *

It was about 11.45, and the line in front of the waffle store was long. Another wave of commuters had just exited the tube station and some of them piled up in front of the counter. Tessa greeted each one with a smile and watched with amusement as they received their waffles, or ice cream, or both. She was really enjoying this job. The smell of waffles was rich in the air, and most of the customers went with a smile on their face.

"Here's your waffle," Tessa chirped, holding out a little girl's waffle. She looked at it with excitement and joy. She gave Tessa the money, took the waffle and mumbled a quick "Thank you" before skipping away. Tessa chuckled and turned around to take a sip of water, as the girl was the last in line. As she tipped the plastic cup into her mouth, she heard an all-too-familiar voice.

"Excuse me, can I get a waffle?"

Tessa froze in horror. Sophie was on her lunch break, and she was the only one serving at the counter. She put down the cup and took a deep breath, preparing herself.

She turned around with a smile plastered on her face. "What would you like to have?"

Will's eyes widened. "_Tessa_?"

Tessa felt her cheeks redden and she pursed her lips. "Yes, what would you like to have?" she repeated.

Will stood there for a moment, staring at Tessa. She looked away uncomfortably.

"What are you doing here, Tess?" he asked.

Tessa sighed and looked at him. "Just tell me what you want to order, Will."

Will continued to look at her curiously. He opened his mouth to ask another question, but Tess spotted Sophie walking towards the shop.

"Sophie!" she shouted, relief flooding her voice. Sophie perked her head up and looked at her questioningly. "I'm going for my lunch break now!"

She nodded and Tessa threw off her apron. Before Will could protest, Tess pushed up the counter and left, wrenching herself away from Will's attempts to get a hold of her.

"Tessa!" he shouted after her.

She walked quickly towards Oxford Circus, and she nearly smacked her forehead for being so stupid. _I could've gone into the tube station, _she thought. Tessa groaned and walked faster. She got to Oxford Circus was about to cross the street, but as she stepped forward, someone yanked her arm back as a black cab drove past the spot where she was before being pulled back.

"At least look before you want to cross the street," a voice said, "Especially at Oxford Circus."

Tessa turned around to Will, who still held her arm with a tired expression on his face. She yanked her arm away and turned back to face the road.

"Just go, Will," Tessa said coldly.

She saw Will step to stand next to her from the corner of her eye. "You said you were going for a lunch break right? Let's go to lunch together. My treat."

Tessa looked at him in surprise. Why was he being so kind? He was a rude boy who cared for only a handful amount of people, as she had learned over the past week. It was a bit harsh for only a week to evaluate, but Will made it very clear to her that he did not care about her at all. _I'm just an intern after all, _Tessa thought bitterly. But now he was going to find out that she also didn't live… luxuriously.

The crossing light turned green and Tessa gratefully walked across, eager to leave Will behind.

"Come on, Tess," his voice said from behind her.

She stopped abruptly, causing people around her to grunt or protest. Tessa turned around to face Will. He had used the nickname, and somehow that made her eyes softer. She sighed.

"Fine," she said reluctantly.

Will silently took her hand and dragged her in a run to the other side of the street, as the stoplight was going to turn green soon. They ended up in Carnaby Street, sitting in Pret a Manger. They found a table in the corner and sat across from each other in the comfortable couches. Tessa took a sip from her berry smoothie. Will had a sandwich in front of him and a bottle of water

They ate in awkward silence, averting their eyes from each other whenever they met.

Finally, Will spoke up. "All right, Tess. Why did you try to avoid me?"

He asked this so straightforwardly that Tessa stopped in the middle of putting a spoonful of soup in her mouth. She hastily put the spoon down and straightened up. _Should I tell him the truth?_ she thought. His eyes were serious, the shade of a deep part of the ocean that Tessa had only seen in pictures.

"I didn't want you to see me... there," she added hesitantly, unsure of how to explain it.

Wil raised his eyebrows. "Really?" he asked sarcastically. "I would never have guessed," he added.

Tessa rolled her eyes and ignored him.

"The real question is, why are you working in a waffle shop?"

She looked at him again. If she told him, he might not want to even be around her anymore. He was rich, incredibly so. Tessa internally smacked herself. _And what's so bad with that? _she asked herself. _It's just Will. I don't care what he thinks about me... Right?_

Will cleared his throat. "So...?"

"I thought selling waffles would be fun, you know," she replied with a shrug. He squinted his eyes at her, trying to see through the lie. "Especially since it's right at Oxford Street. And I love waffles," she added. She hoped it was believable.

Will looked at her carefully. She cursed herself as she felt her cheeks redden. He was only trying to see if she was lying, nothing more. Why was it such a big deal then?

She cleared her throat and glanced at her watch. "Well, I have to go back to work now," Tessa declared. She got up with her bottle of berry smoothie. "Thank you, Will," she said with a smile.

Will opened his mouth to say something, but Tessa turned around and left.

* * *

"And I love waffles," she said weakly.

He knew she was lying. But she was so reluctant and so nervous, and Will didn't want to push her. That surprised himself. He wasn't pushing her to get what he wanted, because it would hurt her. Why?

She was just an intern. A bloody intern who had surprised him with her stubbornness. She was very pretty, but not as pretty as the girls Will had dated before. She had stormy blue gray eyes that were just like the London sky at the moment. Her silky brown hair tumbled down her shoulders.

Tessa cleared her throat and Will snapped out of his daze. He had been staring for too long, and her cheeks were pink.

"Well, I have to go to work now," she said stiffly. She got up and said, in a much softer voice, "Thank you, Will."

He opened his mouth to say something, but she turned around and left.

Will put his head in his hands. What was he doing?

* * *

"So," Sophie began, "Who was that?"

Tessa blushed again. "No one," she replied flatly.

"Doesn't seem like he's no one," Sophie stated, raising her eyebrows. "Is he your ex or something?"

"No!" Tessa exclaimed, nearly dropping the waffle in her hand. "Of course not. He's just someone who works with me," she added.

"Wait, you work somewhere else?"

"Yeah," Tessa said hesitantly. Sophie's eyes beckoned her to continue. "Fine. I have an internship at The Shadowhunters," she said in defeat.

Sophie's mouth fell open. "_What?_"

"It's just an internship," Tessa mumbled, giving another waffle to the next customer.

"At the most famous company in the world!"

Tessa resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "That is definitely an exaggeration."

"Fine, but what are you doing here?" Sophie asked, taking the payment from a customer.

"I like being occupied," Tessa replied with a shrug. She couldn't tell Sophie her real reason. Not yet, at least. Sophie just raised her eyebrows, but said nothing.

* * *

**Okay, so not much happens in this chapter. It's mostly just a build-up for the plot. Oh and the softer side of Will showing! But then again... **

**Anyways, sorry it took a bit long for this. I got my hands on Allegiant on Saturday and I finished it that night. Or the next morning, depending on how you look at it. And it may or may not have broken me. Into a million little pieces. So I wrote a one-shot to help myself recover. And this is shameful advertising, but if you've read Allegiant, please check out my story called "Forever"! I'm really proud of this one, and I cried writing it.**

**Also, the waffle place mentioned above does in fact exist. It's called Wafflemeister. And it is amazing. Especially in winter. And if you don't know, there is also a Pret a Manger at Carnaby Street, which is really close to the waffle place. So yeah.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own The Infernal Devices or anything mentioned above. **


	4. Opinions

Tessa walked up to The Institute with a small skip in her step. Now that she knew Will wasn't always so incorrigible, meeting him wasn't completely unbearable.

Charlotte had said that she would start learning the work in The Shadowhunters in her second week, so she could hopefully work in one of their departments after her internship.

She walked into Charlotte's empty office and proceeded to her own tiny one. She had slowly started filling the empty bookshelf with her favorites. Now it had A Tale of Two Cities, Great Expectations, Dante's Inferno, and Pride and Prejudice. They were all classics, but then again, it was her favorite genre.

Now, she added Les Miserables to the bookshelf. It was a bit depressing for her taste, but she still loved it nonetheless.

As she put the book in next to Pride and Prejudice, she heard a chuckle.

"Enthusiastic about books, are we?"

She swirled around and found Will, casually leaning againts the doorway. His eyes glinted with amusement and his mouth was a smirk.

"Yes," Tessa replied calmly. "So?"

"Nothing," Will replied, striding towards her. "I just never knew you were the reading type."

"Well, it's hardly fair to judge me before even knowing me," Tessa scoffed, rolling her eyes. She watched as Will approached her and stopped abruptly in front of her.

He was only inches away from her now. Tessa stiffened. She had forgotten how to breathe, yet his scent wafted into her nose. He smelled like sweat and something sharp. He looked down at her, and leaned forward. She kept her eyes glued forward, resisting every urge to look into his eyes, and ended up looking at his chest as he raised his arm and reached behind her.

He retracted his hand with a thick book in it, and flipped through the pages.

"Really?" Will whispered. His voice sounded hoarse and breathless. He cleared his throat and spoke a little bit louder. "Really? A Tale of Two Cities?" he asked condescendingly.

Tessa's dazed look turned into one of indignation. "Yes. In fact, it's my favorite book."

Will rolled his eyes. "I think it's ridiculous. Sydney didn't have to die at the end."

Tessa immediately launched into a long rant. "No! His death was necessary because it proved his love to Lucie. He seemed to be impenetrable, but sacrificing himself showed Lucie just how much he loved her, because he just wanted her to be _happy_, even if it meant that he had to suffer!" Tessa explained passionately. She paused, letting her argument sink in. "He died for love," she added quietly.

Will raised his eyebrows. "I still think it's stupid."

Tessa gave a frustrated groan and crossed her arms. "Fine, insult my favorite book. Whatever. It's not like my opinions ever matter anyway. I'm just some poor orphan girl. I'm not important or anything," Tessa snapped. She immediately regretted saying anything. She wished she hadn't said it even though it was true. She didn't want to open up to Will, who could be gentle in one moment and ruthless the next.

Will's eyes began to soften. "Tess," he began quietly.

Before he could continue, however, Tessa looked away and walked past him. "I'm sorry, I need... fresh air."

She stalked out of the room and walked aimlessly, chastising herself for being so careless.

After about 15 minutes of walking around with no destination, she bumped into someone. _Not again_, she thought. Tessa looked up and found that Jem was looking at her worriedly.

"Are you okay, Tessa?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," she replied, not meeting his eyes. "I'm just gonna-"

She was cut off when he took a firm hold of her shoulders, making her look up in surprise.

"Wha-"

"Tessa, what happened?" he asked, concern lacing his gentle voice.

"I... well, it's just that-" Tessa broke off with a sigh of defeat.

Jem looked at her critically, then nodded, as if his suspicions were confirmed. "Come with me."

Tessa walked beside him, admiring his gracefulness. He walked gently and almost cautiously, yet it still seemed casual. His face was a perfect picture of serenity and thoughtfulness. Everything about him made Tessa feel calmer and safer.

It was so different from being with Will. He was reckless and unpredictable and fiery, while Jem was calm and subtle yet expressive.

She wondered how the two of them got along so well. In fact, they seemed to be closer than even brothers.

Tessa's train of thought was put to a stop as Jem opened a door. It led to a staircase which seemed to spiral around. Jem began ascending.

"Where are we going?" Tessa asked, walking up the carpeted stairs. There were dim yellow lights illuminating the tight passage.

He looked back at her and smiled, before continuing up the stairs and pushing open another door.

Tessa gasped. They were on the roof of the Institute and there was a full view of London.

The Thames River glittered under the sun which glowed softly behind a curtain of fluffy white clouds. The sky was a light blue, with a bit of really light gray. In between the tall buildings were red double-deckers, rolling along the streets. Big Ben and the London Eye stood proudly amidst the other buildings. The city seemed alive and peaceful at the same time.

She heard Jem chuckle next to her. "I knew this would help get your mind off of things," he said.

"Thank you," Tessa replied. "I needed to clear my head."

"So, what exactly happened?"

Tessa shook her head. "I'd rather not."

Jem looked at her and Tessa braced herself for the questions. "Okay then," Jem said to her surprise.

She looked at him with her eyebrows furrowed. "Really?"

Jem smiled down at her. "Yeah, really."

Tessa's grateful smile slowly became a grin. "Well then. Now that my head's clear, I should really go back before Charlotte goes looking for me."

"Of course," Jem replied. He exaggerated a bow and offered his hand. "Shall we go, m'lady?"

Tessa assumed a proud posture and a faux British accent. "Why of course, good sir," she replied, taking his hand.

They grinned at each other before walking down the staircase.

"This is the Department of Culinary," Charlotte introduced with a flourish of her hand.

Tessa looked around the massive kitchen. There was a row of ovens against one wall, and a row of stoves against another. There were at least 3 fridges scattered around the room. Pots and pans hung from pegs and some were strewn about. The sink was oddly clear of dirty dishes.

"Basically, it's the kitchen," Will added cheerfully.

Tessa glanced at him. He hadn't brought up anything about that morning. She had walked into her office and found him sitting on her chair, his head buried deep in A Tale of Two Cities.

He had looked up and grinned at her, acting as if nothing had happened at all. He was still keeping up the act, and she was more than glad for it.

"So this is where all the food comes from?"

"Yes," Charlotte replied. "Our head chef is Agatha, and her sous chef is Bridget." She pointed to a plump woman who was stirring something in a pot.

Will took Charlotte's introduction as an invitation to go up to her. "Well hello, Agatha," he said seductively. Tessa pursed her lips to suppress laughter.

He leaned in and purred, "Do you have any…_chocolate tarts_?"

Tessa burst out laughing. "You're disgusting, Will!"

Will mockingly gasped and clutched his chest, right over his heart. "It hurts here!"

She laughed even more and Will grinned. He looked pleased and his deep blue eyes were sparkling. Tessa recovered and wiped a non-existent tear from her eye.

"You are absolutely ridiculous, William," she said, shaking her head.

"_William_?" he asked, laughing. "Who are you? My mother?"

Tessa tossed her head in indignation. "Oh shut up."

"Alright, you two," Charlotte said tiredly. "Let's get going." She started exiting the room, mumbling to herself.

The two of them followed, walking side by side. This was what she loved best about Will. He could always make her laugh and forget about her worries.

"This is the Department of Education," Charlotte said, opening a set of double doors.

Inside was one of the most marvelous things Tessa had ever seen. It was a gigantic three-story library, with shelves overflowing with books. She stood there, dumbfounded, taking in her surroundings.

"I see you like this place," Will whispered to her.

Charlotte's clear voice cut through her daze. "This is the Library, but it is also where the Department of Education works. All the academic lessons occur here. It's also a nice place for reading, if you ever want to. There are small rooms in the second and third level for other things, like music lessons, art lessons, and so on."

Tessa was still looking around, her eyes sparkling with excitement at the sight of so many books.

"Are we allowed to borrow these books?" Tessa asked.

"Of course. Just make sure to check out at that desk over there," Charlotte replied, smiling.

"Shall we take a tour?" Will asked.

He offered his arm to Tessa and she looped her arm around his.

"You two go on ahead, I have things to do here," Charlotte told them.

They walked around, with Will showing her each room in the second floor.

"So what subjects do you study here?" Tessa asked.

"Oh, loads. Maths, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Economics, _English_ _Literature_," Will answered, chuckling at Tessa.

Tessa rolled her eyes then peered into one of the rooms. It was a music room, with cushioned walls to make it sound proof. There was a grand piano in one corner of the room and against one wall was a huge glass case filled with musical instruments. There was a violin, guitar, flute, and even a triangle Tessa was never able to play musical instruments; she never had enough money to take lessons. But she still marveled at the beauty of these musical instruments, all perfectly polished and shining in the case. She could only imagine what they would sound like when someone played them.

"I see that you are easily amazed," Will remarked from behind her.

"There's no fault in appreciating beauty, Will."

"I never said it was wrong. I just meant that you easily see beauty in the most mundane things. Like books and musical instruments."

She turned to look at him. "Those aren't exactly mundane. A book, while appearing dull, is so much more when you open it. It's another world, it's a breathtaking journey. And these instruments," she gestured to the room behind her, "produce sounds that can move someone to tears. If you think about it, books and music aren't all that different. They both take you away and make you feel something." Her eyes were distant now, her voice quiet. Tessa looked back up into Will's deep ocean blue eyes. He was looking at her with amusement, as Tessa expected, but beneath it was something else. Was it… awe?

Will cleared his throat and smirked. "Well, I see that you are not only easily amazed, but you are also very passionate about the smallest things."

"And that is _not_ a bad thing, William," Tessa replied, rolling her eyes yet again.

"Again with the 'William'! You are still not my mother, Tess."

She gave a frustrated groan and playfully shoved him, walking past into the seemingly endless shelves of books.

* * *

**Hello! I'm sorry for this kind of crappy chapter. I needed to build up the setting and characters first before dropping the first... um... bomb. Okay that was cliché but yeah. **

**I'm also so so sorry for the long wait! I kept on getting writer's block with this chapter. Plus, I'm also frantically writing for NaNoWriMo. Which means that the next chapter might also take a while to write. **

**Thank you to all of you who have left reviews and followed/favorited this story! You guys actually motivate me to keep writing more :) **

**And thank you to the anon who reminded me that I had named the receptionist Sophie. That was incredibly stupid of me, but I've fixed it (The receptionist no longer has a name)**

**DISCLAIMER: I (sadly) do not own The Infernal Devices or anything else mentioned. **


	5. I Wasn't Staring

Tessa sat cross-legged on the carpeted floor of her office, reading Great Expectations. She had finished the letters that Charlotte had asked her to write, and she now had a bit of free time.

"You too?" a voice said.

Tessa looked up, startled, and saw Cecily in the doorway, looking beautiful and fashionable as always. She was wearing black leggings and an expensive-looking white top, her jet black hair flowing down her back.

"Oh, hi Cecily," Tessa said. Then, as Cecily's comment registered in her mind, she gave her a questioning look. "Wait, what do you mean?"

"Will," Cecily said simply, before walking and sitting next to Tessa. Tessa herself was wearing navy blue leggings with a matching blazer and a light grey top underneath.

"Huh? What about Will?"

"He reads, too. In fact, he reads like madman," Cecily stated, rolling her eyes. Tessa looked at her with wide eyes.

As the idea sunk into her mind, she started wondering how she didn't figure it out before. He did insult A Tale of Two Cities, but that only means that he's read it as well. And he took her around the library as if he knew the place like the back of his own hand, and he probably did.

"Well that explains a lot," Tessa mumbled.

"Sorry, what was that?"

"Nothing," Tessa waved off. She looked back down to the book and began to continue reading.

"So, do you like shopping?" Cecily asked cheerfully.

Tessa turned to her, scrunching her forehead. "I'm okay with it," she replied slowly. Cecily immediately squealed and locked Tessa in a tight hug.

"Great! We'll go shopping for your dress on Friday!"

"Cecily... I... can't... breathe..." Tessa choked out. Cecily immediately released her and Tessa gasped for air.

"Sorry."

Tessa regained her composure and Cecily's words finally sunk in. "Why do I need to shop for a dress?"

"For the dinner party! …which I forgot to tell you about," Cecily realized. She smacked her forehead lightly. "I completely forgot to tell you. We're having dinner together on Saturday night, and we thought you should come."

Tessa was taken aback for a while. They had thought of her?

"Will you come? Oh, _please_ come. It would be nice to have another girl around," Cecily begged.

"Of course, I'll come," Tessa replied, smiling. "Wait, why would you be the only girl if there's Jessamine?"

"Jessie never wants to come," Cecily shrugged. "Anyways, it's at 7.30 on Saturday in this Thai restaurant behind Selfridges. Do you know where that is?"

Tessa nodded. Selfridges was less than a minute away by foot from the waffle shop. She just had to find the restaurant.

"Great. So, we'll go shopping for a dress on Friday night at... Oxford Street? We'll go there together from here," Cecily told her firmly.

Before Tessa could say anything else, Cecily skipped out the door. She smiled to herself. She was invited to have dinner with them -she assumed 'them' to be the people she knew from The Institute.

"Dreaming of me again, Tessa?"

Tessa looked up and found Will casually leaning against the doorway –as usual.

"Go away," Tessa said tiredly.

"Not a chance," Will replied cheerfully, taking long strides to sit in front of Tessa.

She sat there, glaring at Will.

"Look, I know my beauty is impossible to ignore, but staring is quite rude."

"I wasn't staring, I was _glaring_," Tessa huffed.

"That rhymes. I should make a poem based on that," Will said thoughtfully.

"Please don't," she groaned.

Will ignored this and cleared his throat to begin.

"_I wasn't staring, I was glaring._

_I wasn't swooning, I was mooning._

_I wasn't frowning, I was drowning._

_I wasn't-_"

"No no no no," Tessa interjected. She put her hand over Will's mouth to silence him. "You're done. Your career in poetry is also done. So please, just- AAAAAHHHHH!"

Tessa screamed in disgust as she pulled her hand away, now wet with Will's saliva. "EWWW, WILL! You're absolutely disgusting!"

Will gave her a wicked grin. Tessa wiped her wet hand on Will's shirt, and with that his grin was wiped off as well.

"It's you own saliva," Tessa shrugged. She got up and took a small bottle of hand sanitizer from her bag.

She squeezed out a generous amount and wiped it on her hands, her nose scrunched up from the sharp smell.

After being content that her hand was sanitized to normality, Tessa picked up her book and continued to read, completely ignoring Will's presence.

After a few minutes, Tessa looked up, clearly annoyed that he was still there. "What?"

"You scrunch your forehead when you're reading," he observed absentmindedly.

It was such a simple comment, yet Tessa felt her face warming up. She looked down to hide her blush. She cursed herself for blushing so easily. This was stupid. Why was she even blushing? That probably wasn't even a compliment.

"So?"

"So nothing. I just thought you should know," he replied, his voice still far away. Tess glanced up to see that Will was still looking at her. Her cheeks reddened even more and she ducked behind her book, pretending to read. But she couldn't concentrate, not with Will there, staring at her.

"What do you want, Will?" Tessa asked with a sigh.

"Well, I wanted to ask you something. Do you only read classics?" he asked, genuinely interested.

Tessa looked at him, clearly surprised that he was asking a normal question. "No. I just love classics. But I read modern books as well," she replied. Then she looked at him closely and decided to ask, "What's your favorite genre?"

This time, Will looked surprised. "How do you know I read books?"

"Well, it's a bit obvious, isn't it? You've obviously read 'A Tale of Two Cities' or else you wouldn't dislike it, and you know the library extremely well," she explained. Will looked slightly impressed. "Plus, Cecily told me."

"Ah, of course. I knew you weren't that good at deducing," he smirked. Tessa just shot him a glare. "Well, I like classics, too. And some modern stuff, sometimes."

Tessa blinked at him. They actually liked the same type of books. A smile slowly crept on her face and Will's eyes seemed to be dancing. They stayed silent for a while, but it wasn't awkward despite the fact that they were just looking at each other, smiling with their own thoughts in mind.

Finally, Tessa broke the connection, looking back down at her book. She pursed her lips to get rid of the stupid smile on her face.

Suddenly, a voice spoke up from the doorway. "Finally. The sexual tension was almost unbearable."

They both looked up at the speaker, which was apparently Jessamine. "Okay, I know that there's no door there," Tessa began her voice rising, "But why does everyone just sneak up on me? Does no one say 'hello' first? Honestly," she finished, throwing her hands up exasperatedly.

Jessamine scowled at her. "Fine. Hello, Tessa."

Will cleared his throat in indignation. "I can't believe you overlooked me. I'm always the center of any woman's attention," he said with a light wave of his hand.

"As if!" Jessamine shouted, while Tessa hit his arm hard.

Will gripped his arm and contorted his face in exaggerated pain. "OWWWW!"

Tessa snorted as Jessamine smirked. It seemed that they both had finally had something in common. Tessa grinned at Jessamine with this thought in mind, and although Jessamine raised her eyebrows with an air of arrogance and superiority, there was a small smile tugging on the corners of her mouth.

She cleared her throat. "That's it. I'm having no more of this nonsense," she declared, before walking out with her nose in the air.

"I can't believe you sided with Jessamine," Will whined, pouting and widening his eyes. Tessa couldn't help smiling, seeing how adorable he was. He seemed to sense this and continued in a baby voice, "Tess, you abandoned me."

Her face broke out into a grin and this seemed to greatly please Will. As the smile faded away, Will continued to stare at her. Just as Tessa was beginning to blush again, Will started leaning forward.

_Wait, what? _Tessa thought. She stiffened, wide-eyed and unable to think as Will's face came closer to hers.

Their lips were only a few inches shy of each other when Will's eyes widened. His eyes -which had been directed at her lips during this whole exchange- darted up to her face. He suddenly jerked back with so much force that he nearly toppled over. He scrambled away from her and got to his feet.

"I- uh… " he trailed off, his eyes looking wild and confused and… scared?

He stood still abruptly and the light was gone from his eyes. They were, dark, cold, and unforgiving. "I have to go," he said curtly, before walking out of the room quickly, not even sparing a glance at her.

Tessa watched him go, her eyes beginning to sting with the arrival of tears.

What had she done wrong? She realized that it was stupid to even think that Will had cared for her. Why would he? He was exceedingly handsome and he could probably get any girl he wanted. While Tessa was just… Tessa. She blinked away the tears. God, this was stupid. She didn't really think he liked her, did she? And even if she did, why would it matter to her anyways? It's not like she liked him. He was just a stupid, stupid boy.

Tessa closed her eyes and took deep breaths.

* * *

"Stupid, stupid, stupid," Will muttered under his breath as he walked out of Charlotte's office.

He had let his guard down. He had been careless and stupid. She was just some girl, yet he had let his walls down for her. He couldn't let that happen again. He had to distance himself from her. He had to.

* * *

"_I challenge you to a duel!" yelled a squeaky voice. _

"_Will? Will, who are you talking to?"_

_Will eyed the snake in front of him. He knew just how to attack it. He could see himself in his mind, giving the snake a karate chop on its neck and strangling it._

_He stepped forward._

"_Will? Oh my God, Will! No!"_

_The snake recoiled for a moment, before darting its head forward. Will widened his eyes. He had not expected it to come forward so quickly._

"_Will!"_

_The snake bared its venom-filled fangs, ready to sink into Will's flesh. But he saw a blur of black in front of him and a thump._

_The bite never came._

* * *

He found himself in front of the library doors, having walked there unconsciously. Tessa had noticed how well he knew this place.

Will walked inside and found a dark abandoned corner which he thought was the perfect place for brooding. He sat down cross-legged and leaned against the wall behind him, closing his eyes and telling his mind to stop thinking of her.

* * *

**Hellooo! WILL? WHAT'S WRONG WILL? Well, most of you would have already guessed it probably, especially with the other TID fanfics out there which I know you guys read because I see your reviews hahah.**

**So yes, I've been gone for a long time, and I would've been gone for longer if I hadn't been so insistent on finishing this chapter. ****I've been sneaking in a few paragraphs every time I get writer's block for my novel for NaNoWriMo. Which is still 5000 words behind my schedule.**

**Also I should actually be studying, because my written exams start tomorrow. And it starts with English Literature. Yay for sore hands tomorrow after writing 3 essays in 2 hours. *sigh***

**Anyways, I hope you liked this chapter! You might have to wait some time before chapter 6 though. Sorry. Exams and all.**

**OH ALSO: The Thai restaurant mentioned above (which will be the setting of next chapter hint hint) is an actual restaurant, which is exactly where I said; behind Selfridges. And they're Thai food is just AMAZING. It's called Busaba Eathai. If you ever go to Oxford Street in London and you like Asian food, have lunch there. I love the place.**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own The Infernal Devices or Busaba Eathai or anything mentioned above.**


	6. Dresses and Thai Food

That Saturday morning, as Tessa got ready for work, her phone rang. She picked it up and balanced the phone between her ear and shoulder while putting on a black pair of thermal tights. It was early November and the usually cool temperature had begun dropping rapidly.

"Hello?"

"Hey Tessa!" Cecily chirped enthusiastically.

"Hi Cecily, what's up?" she asked, taking her phone with her hand now that she was finished with the tights.

"Well, I was wondering if you want to come over to my house today to get ready."

"Yeah, sure! That sounds great. Where's your house?" Tessa asked, taking a sip from her cup of coffee.

"It's in Regent's Park. I'll text you the address later," Cecily replied casually.

Tessa nearly choked on her coffee. She'd heard that the houses in Regent's Park were gigantic and very pricey. Of course, they were most definitely rich, considering they own a big share of The Shadowhunters. But it was still a shock to her.

"Alright, what time?" Tessa asked croakily, still recovering from her coffee choke.

"I don't know, about 3?"

She thought about it and groaned. "I'm sorry, I can't. I have… something that I need to do. How about 5.30?"

There was a crackling silence as Cecily seemed to consider this. "Okay," she finally said. "But that means we're _really _gonna have to hurry," she added in a warning tone.

"Yes, ma'am," Tessa answered teasingly.

Cecily seemed unfazed by this and answered in her usual cheery tone. "Alright, see you tonight!"

The line went dead and Tessa put her phone in her purse. It was a very short journey to Regent's Park from the waffle shop, so she might as well bring all her things. It wouldn't make sense to go back and forth.

She quickly ran into her room and stuffed in her make-up bag into a duffel bag, along with the pair of heels she had prepared. She took the dress from her closet and carefully placed it in the bag. She could only hope it wouldn't be too wrinkled by tonight.

Tessa glanced at the clock. She had to go now or she'd be late. She stuffed her feet into fluffy boots and shrugged on a thick navy blue coat before grabbing her things and running out the door.

* * *

"Where do you have to go?" Sophie asked, her voice snapping Tessa back to attention.

"What? Oh, no. Nowhere," Tessa quickly shrugged it off.

Sophie raised her eyebrows. "Oh, come on. You've been looking at that clock every 5 minutes for the past hour. I know our shift's almost over, but you never actually look at the clock _that_ often."

Tessa sighed in defeat. She opened her mouth to answer but another customer appeared. Gladly taking the distraction, she greeted him cheerily.

As soon as the man left with his waffle, Sophie cornered Tessa again.

"Alright, alright. It's nothing much really. I'm just having dinner with some of the people from The Shadowhunters, and I need to prepare," Tessa shrugged.

Sophie looked at her with a glint in her eye. "Trying to impress your boyfriend, huh?"

Ever since Will first found out about Tessa's extra job, he'd been visiting nearly every week.

"Wha- No! Of course not," Tessa sputtered out.

"Hah! So he _is_ your boyfriend!" Sophie exclaimed in triumph.

"What? No, Sophie!"

"You didn't deny it," Sophie teased, grinning and jumping from foot to foot.

"He isn't-"

"There's nothing to be ashamed of. He's actually pretty darn hot," Sophie said with a shrug. "Just… be careful, okay?" she added after a moment's hesitation.

Tessa looked at her critically. There was definitely something else. But she just said, "I am _not_ dating anyone."

"Well, you could certainly date him," Sophie finally replied.

Tessa looked at the ground bitterly. "Yeah, if he ever talks to me again," she muttered.

Sophie whirled around. "What?"

"Nothing," Tessa waved off. She looked at the clock. It was 5 p.m. now.

"Alright," she said, taking her red apron off and grabbing her things. "I'm gonna get going now."

"See you tomorrow!" Sophie called out as Tessa raised the countertop and walked out.

"Bye Sophie!"

"Oh, and have fun with your date!" she yelled from behind the counter.

Tessa's cheeks visibly reddened as a few strangers shot a look at her. She walked to Oxford Street Station to take the tube. Regent's Park was only one stop away, but it was actually a bit far by foot.

* * *

The wind immediately hit her as she emerged from the station. She looked at her phone and looked for the correct street. After trudging through the freezing streets, she found the Herondale house.

Tessa stood in front of it, dumbfounded by its grandeur. It wasn't just a house in Regent's Park. It was a _mansion _in Regent's Park. She tentatively walked up to the towering black gates and found a sort of intercom device next to it.

She pressed the button that looked to be the bell. The intercom buzzed to life.

"Who is it?" asked an unfamiliar voice.

"It's Tessa, Cecily's friend."

"Oh, come right inside," the voice said.

There was a loud click from the gates and Tessa pushed one of them to find it unlocked. She walked up the driveway to the giant double doors. Knocking would probably be no use in a house that big. Just as she was about to call Cecily, the doors opened.

"Tessa!" Cecily exclaimed, giving her a quick hug. She pulled away and Tessa saw that she had done her own make-up and hair. "Great, you're early. But still, we have no time to lose, so let's start now."

She pulled Tessa in and gestured for her to take off her coat and boots. As soon as she did, Cecily dragged her up the stairs. Tessa almost tripped as she marveled at the interior of the house. It looked fancy from the outside, but it was just _grand_ in the inside. Cold marble floors, a chandelier hanging from the ceiling, a carpeted grand staircase. It was a _lot_ to take in.

But before Tessa could do so, she was on the second floor, half-running to Cecily's room. They passed quite a few doors until the came to the end of the hallway. Cecily pushed open one of the white double doors –all the doors that she'd seen so far were double doors- and Tessa's eyes widened. Her room was gigantic, with a king-sized bed in the middle. It was also beautiful. Not too girly, and not too minimalistic. The floors were carpeted. Some of the walls were a rich deep blue, while others were an off-white cream colour. The ceiling was high up and blue decorated with clouds.

Cecily plopped down in one of the beanbags at the corner of the room and Tessa sat down next to her.

"Okay. Where's the dress we bought yesterday?"

Tessa opened her duffel bag and pulled it out slowly in answer. She was glad to see it in near perfect condition. Cecily squinted at it and shook her head.

"No, we need to iron it first. It's slightly wrinkled."

"Sure, but do we have time? Or I can iron it while you do my hair," Tessa offered.

"It's fine, I'll ask one of the maids."

"You have _maids_?" Tessa asked, incredulous.

"Yeah," Cecily replied nonchalantly. She hopped up from her seat to the corner of the door, where there was an intercom. As she asked for someone to come up, Tessa took out her other things.

Cecily came back and pulled Tessa up without a word. She pointed to the other side of the room, where there was a vanity table, and Tessa walked over obediently. She knew Cecily well enough to know that when Cecily was on to something, she couldn't be disturbed and it would be best for everybody to just do what she said.

Tessa sat in the chair and looked at herself in the mirror. Her nose and cheeks were flushed from the cold. Her hair was also disheveled from the wind. Cecily came up a few seconds later with Tessa's make-up bag in hand. Tessa glanced at Cecily's reflection in the mirror. She was absolutely beautiful, with her full lips and long eyelashes. She sighed at her own reflection. She wasn't unattractive, but she wasn't pretty either. Just plain.

"Actually, before we start, wash your hair and face first," Cecily said after observing her for a while.

15 minutes later, Tessa came out of the –enormous- bathroom with her hair in a towel. She had managed to wash it without getting herself too wet. She sat down on the vanity table and Cecily, who was lying down on the bed, came over quickly. She turned Tessa's chair to the side and took another chair to sit on front of her.

Cecily began her work on Tessa.

* * *

"Done," Cecily declared, taking her hands off Tessa's face. She had managed to do Tessa's hair and make-up in just a bit over an hour and a half. She turned Tessa's chair towards the mirror and Tessa widened her eyes.

Cecily had managed to make her look… pretty. Her usually dull brown hair came down in curls over her shoulder. A bit of hair from each side of her head had been pinned to the back, leaving a few strands loose in the front. Her make-up was a palette of warm colours that brought out the blue in her grey eyes, and her lips were covered in shiny tinted gloss.

"Cecily… Thank you," she whispered in awe.

Cecily smiled back at her. "Okay, now put on your dress while I touch up my make-up."

Tessa walked over to Cecily's bed where the dress had been laid down by one of her maids. She went inside the walk-in closet –yes, a _big _walk-in closet- and changed. She got out and put on her black heels. Cecily rushed past her into the closet to change into her own outfit.

Tessa looked down at her dress. It wasn't too fancy, since they weren't going on a huge dinner or anything, just them. It was a midnight blue dress with a low square neckline. The straps were thick and crossed at the back. At the waist, it flowered out to just a few short inches above her knees. Underneath, she wore skin-colored tights because it was chilly outside.

"Ready?" Cecily asked. Tessa grabbed her black purse and turned around.

"Cecily, you look amazing," Tessa said.

She was wearing a pale pink dress. It was a sweetheart strapless underneath covered in lace that had a Sabrina neckline. The lace ended at her waist and a tulle skirt flared out. Her heels were a chocolate brown and her hair curled down one shoulder.

Cecily beamed at Tessa. "Well, let's get going. Can't keep the boys waiting."

Tessa was about to walk out the door when she remembered something. "Wait, are we going together with Will?"

"Yeah, why?" Cecily asked.

Tessa tried to look casual. "Nah, just asking."

Cecily looked at her questioningly but decided to let it go. They walked down the corridor together. In reality, she was a bit nervous seeing Will. He hadn't talked to her ever since the… incident. Just a few words whenever necessary. Distant. Cold.

As Cecily began to descend the spiraling grand staircase, she heard Will's voice.

"There you are! Where have you been? We're going to be late, Cecy," he called out.

Tessa went down right behind her and caught sight of Will, looking even more handsome than usual. He was wearing a dark grey shirt with the top button undone and a pair of black trousers. As their eyes locked, Will fell silent and looked completely surprised.

* * *

Where was Cecily? He glanced down at his watch again. It was nearly 7.30. God, why did girls take so long to get ready?

He heard the clacking of heels and looked up to see her coming downstairs.

"There you are! Where have you been? We're going to be late, Cecy."

Cecily seemed to be hiding a smirk and Will was about to raise his eyebrows when he caught sight of someone else walking down behind Cecily. His mouth nearly dropped open in shock.

Behind her was one of the most beautiful girls he'd ever seen. She seemed nervous and Will immediately recognized her. It was Tess, all dressed up. Her eyes were the bluest he'd ever seen them, the grey just barely visible. Her chocolate brown hair fell down in silky waves and he had a strong urge to run his fingers through them. Her face seemed to glow with a natural warm colour. Her dress hugged her body and showed a lot of bare skin. She looked exquisitely beautiful. Even that seemed like an understatement.

He realized that they had locked eyes and he was now just staring at her creepily. "Uh… Tessa, why are you here?" he asked. It came out a bit rude and Tessa's soft eyes immediately hardened.

"Well, hello to you too, Will," she said coldly. He had to fight the urge to flinch. He almost forgot that he'd been trying to distance himself away from her. Almost.

"Always the pleasure, Miss Gray. Now, do you want to go with us or not?" he asked with an indifferent tone.

Tessa glared at him and opened her mouth to voice a retort, but Cecily cut her off shortly. "Well, we really should get going," she said hastily before walking away. Tessa reluctantly looked away and followed Cecy.

Will walked down the stairs to the garage and grabbed the car keys. He slid into his black Maserati and drove out of the garage to the driveway to pick up the girls.

* * *

Tessa sat in the backseat of the car, staring out the window and sulking. She had nearly gasped at the car –a shiny black Maserati- but was determined to seem unimpressed.

She really had no idea why Will was acting this way. What had she done wrong? He seemed to be cheerful and nice to her, up until they almost kissed. Then he had changed. Maybe he was mortified that he almost kissed her. Maybe he realized that he was much too attractive for a girl like her. She rolled her eyes at the thought. She may not be pretty, but she definitely had the higher moral ground. If anything, he didn't deserve her kindness. Tessa looked up at this. _Had_ she been kind to him?

The car stopped abruptly and Tessa looked around to see that they had parked on the street. Tessa quickly put on her navy blue coat and a scar before opening the car door. The chilly wind immediately hit her and she automatically crossed her arms.

Cecily came out and looked at her with confusion, as if she didn't understand why Tessa was freezing, before walking off. How do all these people survive the cold? What would winter even be like? Tessa thought of all this with horror and didn't realize Will standing there, looking at her with concern.

"Are you okay, Tess?"

Tessa wanted to smack him for using the nickname. Like that would actually make up for everything he'd said. Or rather, what he hadn't said. She was about to stalk off when Will put a warm arm around her.

Yes, it was comforting, and his smell was intoxicating. But why was he suddenly nice like this? He had been absolutely rude literally 10 minutes ago. They began walking, with Will's arm rubbing Tessa's and warming her.

Right as they entered the restaurant, which was called Busaba Eathai, Tessa pulled away and faced him. She immediately missed his body heat, but as much as she liked being hugged by Will, she wasn't going to just let him do whatever he wanted.

"Okay, what do you want Will?"

He looked taken aback. "What do you mean?"

"What do I mean? You've been ignoring me and giving me rude remarks for nearly a week now and suddenly this happens?" Tessa asked, gesturing wildly. "I don't understand. I really don't," she said in exasperation.

He looked at her for a long time, calculating and thinking. He finally swallowed and took a deep breath. "I'm sorry, you're right. I shouldn't have put my arm around you like that. That was just weird," he said before walking off.

Tessa looked after him in disbelief. Did he really just miss her whole point? Well, at least she knew now that there was no use in trying to act nice to him.

She walked in and looked for her friends. A waitress came up to her with a pleasant smile. "Are you with The Shadowhunters?"

Tessa nodded. How did she know them? Did they really come here that often?

"Alright then, right this way."

She was led into a private room where the rest were already gathered.

Gideon sat at the edge of the table nearest the door. Next to him was Gabriel and across was Will. Cecily sat next to Gabriel and Jem was next to Will. Tessa decided to sit down next to Cecily.

"Hi Tessa," Jem greeted with a grin. Gideon and Gabriel said their hellos and went back to their conversation.

"You look beautiful, Tessa," Jem said with a smile. Tessa was startled for a moment and looked at him confusingly.

"Thank you," she finally replied with a shy smile. She already felt the colour rising to her cheeks.

"So, what's good here?" Tessa asked, looking at the menu.

"My favorite is this one," Cecily said, pointing it out on Tessa's menu.

"Oh, for God's sake, just read the description," Will said with a roll of his eyes.

Tessa felt anger course through her, but she wasn't about to let Will ruin her night. She just raised her eyebrows at him. "Yes, these descriptions tell me what's in it, but they don't exactly tell me how it tastes, William," she snapped.

Jem looked between the two of them and sighed.

The rest of the night went by quickly and, despite Will's behavior, it was actually a great night for Tessa. She had gotten to know the Lightwood brothers a bit better and she also got to talk to Jem and Cecily. On top of that, the food was delicious. She had always liked Asian food, but this was just really good.

At the end of the long night, as they reached for the cheque, Gideon snatched it and waved them off.

"It's my treat tonight," he announced in with a big smile. He ignored the protests and after the change came back, they all bid each other goodbye.

"Do you wanna just sleepover at my house? I mean, your stuff is all there," Cecily said as they put on their coats.

"It's okay. I'll go to your house tomorrow to take it," Tessa replied, putting on her thick coat and scarf.

"Alright then," Cecily said as they walked out of the restaurant. "See you tomorrow!" she waved as Tessa walked off towards Bond Street Station.

She hadn't gotten too far when a voice stopped her. "Tessa, do you need a ride home?" Jem asked.

Tessa turned around to face him. "No, it's fine. I'm taking the tube."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. Thank you for the offer though. See you on Monday, Jem," she said, turning back around.

"Wait."

Tessa whirled around again and looked at him expectantly. "What did Will do this time?"

"Nothing," Tessa sighed. Jem raised his fine silver eyebrows. "Fine. He's just been ignoring me. Well, either that or he's rude to me. I don't even know what I did," she said, looking down at her heels. This was going to be a painful walk to her apartment.

His face fell. "Oh, I'm so sorry, Tessa. I didn't think-"

"Yeah, me neither."

"No, I mean, I didn't think he would care for you that much," Jem said.

Tessa looked up at him in surprise and saw that he was smiling sadly. "What are you talking about?"

"Over the years, I've learned a lot of things about Will. One of them is that he does this sometimes. He just distances himself away for a while, then, after you've shown him how stupid and useless it is doing that, he goes back to normal," Jem explained sadly. "But he only does it to the people he loves most," he added with a smile.

"But why would he do that?" Tessa asked.

Jem just shrugged. "I'm still trying to figure that one out. Anyways, I'm sorry for keeping you here. You look like you're freezing to death," he said apologetically.

"That's because I am," she replied with a laugh. "I better get going." There was a short pause as she thought about what he had just told her. "Thank you, Jem," she finally added.

He smiled at her before walking away to his own car.

* * *

**Yes! I started and finished this chapter today! It's the absolute longest chapter I've ever done so far. 3,500 words! **

**I'm actually behind on my NaNoWriMo writing schedule by 3,000 words, and I almost smacked myself for writing this instead. But I really had to write this out because it's been stuck in my head.**

******This isn't the conflict yet, btw. That's still coming later. (But I have it all planned out in my head) **

**I hope you guys liked this chapter, and don't worry, Will will get better. That sounded weird. "Will will". It's mostly just a chapter for Cecily and Tessa to bond and for Jem to be all nice and Jem-like heheheh**

**Again, this restaurant is real, and it is also really good. I don't actually know if they have private rooms, but hey, I can make it up here.**

**Anyways, I will definitely not update until December (which is actually next week WHOA) because of NaNoWriMo (as I said, I'm behind). Plus, I'm still having exams. **

**THANK YOU for reading this and especially for all the reviews, follows, and favorites! You guys are absolutely awesome.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own The Infernal Devices or anything else mentioned above.**


	7. Nate

It was finally December. Tessa was in her tiny office as usual, doing some work. Charlotte had begun giving her much more responsibilities, and she rarely ever had free time anymore.

Tessa sighed and looked out the window. Even though a giant tree was blocking most of her view, it was still beautiful. The white snow glittered in the sun's reflection. It covered the thin branches of the tree and gathered on her windowsill. Past the bare tree, she could see buildings with frosted roofs. The sidewalk was also covered in a thin layer of snow, the gray concrete underneath just barely peeking through. There were footprints left here and there, and the road was shiny with melted snow.

Despite the beauty of it all, she couldn't wait to leave and go back to New York during the holiday. Since she was only an intern, she was allowed to have longer holidays than the other employees there.

She didn't just miss the feeling of spending Christmas in New York, but she also gravely missed Nate. Even though he was technically her cousin, it felt wrong to call him that. He was more like a brother to her. She lived with him for most of her life, and they grew up together.

She hated having to leave him in New York, especially so soon after Aunt Harriet's death, because had begun drinking and gambling. True, he had a high position in the New York branch of Mortmain & Co., a flourishing machinery factory, so he wouldn't run out of money. But she still worried for him, especially after he had called her a few days earlier.

"Tessie, I don't think you should come back for Christmas," Nate had said through the crackling phone line.

"What? Why?" she had asked, beginning to panic.

"I just- I don't think you should… waste your money coming here," he had replied unconvincingly. It was true that Tessa had to use nearly everything she had to visit, but she was working and she had enough to live.

"Nate, what's really going on?"

"Nothing! I swear. Just… don't come here."

"You know that you're just making me more worried right? I'm definitely coming over." A thought had risen to Tessa's mind. "Did Olivia take over my room? Did she move in with you? If that's the case, then I'm totally okay with staying in a hotel," Tessa had said.

"What- No! She- I- Umm..." Nate had sputtered, confirming Tessa's suspicions.

"It's fine, Nate. I'll book the hotel and-"

"We broke up," he had blurted out.

"Oh. Nate, I'm so sorry, I didn't-"

"It's okay, Tessie. But please, don't leave London."

Before Tessa had managed to protest, the line had gone dead.

Tessa frowned at the memory. Just 2 more weeks until she could leave to New York.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a knock. She whirled around and found Jem standing shyly in the doorway. Tessa smiled.

"Did you know that you're the only who ever actually knocks?"

Jem grinned and shook his head.

"So, what's up?" Tessa asked.

"I just wanted to formally invite you to our annual Christmas party. Here," he said, walking towards her with an invitation in his extended arm.

"Oh! That's great," Tessa bubbled, looking at the details on the card. Then her face fell.

"What is it?" Jem asked, noticing the change in her demenour immediately.

"I can't come," Tessa replied, looking up from the invitation. "I'll be in America at the time," she explained sadly.

"It's okay, that's perfectly understandable," Jem said with a warm smile. "I'm sorry you'll miss it, though," he said apologetically.

"Yeah, me too."

"Anyways, I better not interfere with your work anymore. I'll just be off, then. I'll see you at lunch," he said, before walking out through the doorway.

Tessa sighed and looked at the invitation. It was fine, she was going to be with Nate. That would be more than enough.

She continued with her work, emailing people, sorting out papers, and making phone calls.

Her phone buzzed, and she saw that it was the alarm for lunchtime. She got up hastily, already being famished, and went downstairs to the cafeteria.

The lunch at The Shadowhunters was free, and that was one of the perks of working there because the food was always really good.

The menu that day consisted of pasta and a slice of chocolate cake. Tessa took her meal and sat down at her usual table. Cecily and Jem were already there, talking and eating their food. Tessa sat down next to Cecily and joined in on their conversation, which was about the big Christmas party.

"I really wish I could come," Tessa said, swirling her pasta.

Cecily snapped her head towards her. "What? You're not coming?" she asked incredulously.

"I'll be in New York," Tessa shrugged.

"Then just postpone your flight!"

"I can't. I'd have to pay more and-"

"Then just pay and stay a bit longer!" Cecily exclaimed.

"I'm visiting my brothe- cousin, I mean. And I can't just _pay_," Tessa said. "I'd probably have to work afterhours for the next 2 weeks," she muttered.

But Cecily caught it and her eyes widened. "Oh! I didn't mean to- I'm sorry. I'll lend you some mon-"

"No," Tessa replied firmly, her cheeks coloring in embarrassment. She had managed to hide that fact for a long time now, and she slipped up over a stupid thing. Great.

Cecily looked at her worriedly now and was about to say something when Will thumped down next to Jem, across from Tessa. He began eating his pasta silently, ignoring them all.

He hadn't improved much during the month of November, but Tessa learned from Cecily and Jem to just give him space, and he would come around. According to Jem, he'd end up realizing he was stupid for ignoring them and then he'd start chatting like nothing happened. Oh, Will.

"Anyways," Jem finally said, breaking the awkward silence, "I'm sure you'll have fun with your brother, Tessa."

A smile crept onto her face. "Yeah, I will," she said, looking down at her food and smiling to herself.

She ate in silence as Jem and Cecily discussed more details for the party. Gideon and Gabriel eventually came and began talking about it, too.

"Well, I'm gonna go back now," Tessa finally said, finishing her lunch. She got up and waved to the others as she stacked her plate in the cleaning area. She left the cafeteria and decided to spend the rest of her lunchtime in the library, looking for a new book.

When she got there, she saw a familiar black-haired boy.

"Will!"

He whirled around.

"Wha- I thought you were still in the cafeteria. You were still eating when I left!" Tessa exclaimed in confusion.

Will just shrugged. "I walk fast."

Tessa raised her eyebrows.

"I also know some shortcuts."

She smiled faintly. "You know, for a second there I almost believed that you had superhuman walking skills."

He gave another small shrug and walked away into the depths of the library. Tessa sighed. What was it going to take for him to stop ignoring everyone?

She felt her phone vibrate in her pocket before it started ringing. She quickly fished it out, remembering that she was in a library, and pressed the "answer" button.

"Hello?" she said in a half-whisper.

"Yes? Hello? Is this Miss Theresa Gray?" asked an unfamiliar female voice.

"Yes, who am I speaking to?"

"My name is Nancy Cardew. I'm from the New York-Presbyterian Hospital."

Panic bubbled up inside Tessa. "What? What's wrong?"

"I have you as the emergency contact for Nathaniel Gray, your cousin," she explained.

She felt her head beginning to spin. Nate? What happened to Nate?

"Your brother was rushed in a few hours ago due to a small explosion in the Mortmain & Co. Factory, where he was working."

Tessa gasped and felt her knees begin to wobble. "Is he okay? Please tell me he's okay," she whispered, tears beginning to fall on her face.

"Miss Gray, we tried everything we could. But he passed away a few minutes ago."

Tessa stood for a moment, not quite believing her words.

"Miss Gray?" Nancy called out through the phone.

"What did you say?" Tessa whispered numbly.

"Your brother, Nathaniel Gray, couldn't be saved. I'm so sorry, Miss."

_No_. Tessa's knees gave out and her limbs went limp. Her phone crashed to the ground, but she couldn't care less. She expected to hit the cold marble floor of the library, but instead warm arms held her and gently eased her down to the floor.

"Tess, what is it? What's wrong, Tess?" a smooth voice inquired urgently.

Tessa tried to swallow her tears. Despite everything, she still didn't want to cry in front of other people. She felt her eyes stinging and her breaths becoming shorter.

"Nate… Nate's dead," she whispered. Finally, she couldn't hold back the tears any longer. They spilled out and she began sobbing. Her head fell on something firm yet soft, and she was enveloped in warmth. She sobbed, not really caring where she was and who was holding her.

Nate was gone. Her cousin, no, brother, who had taught her how to dance by letting her step on his feet. Who had taught her how to whistle when she was little, and never gave up on her even when she yelled in frustration. The person who had taken care of her when Aunt Harriet da gotten too old to do much. Her big brother was gone, and she was now all alone.

"I don't have anyone left. My family's all dead," she whispered between sobs.

A hand began to stroke her hair.

"You've got all of us here," the deep voice said. Then, hesitantly, he added, "You've got me."

Tessa finally looked up and found herself staring into the most gorgeous pair of dark blue eyes.

"Will?"

He smiled sadly at her. "Yes, Tess. I'm right here. I'm so sorry," he said quietly, actually sounding sincere. "I'll get someone," he added, getting up and gently putting her down from his lap.

Without thinking, she tightened her grip on his now wet shirt. She heard Will breathe in sharply. "Please…" she whispered. "Please don't leave me."

He sat back down and put his strong arms around her. She could feel his warm breaths on the top of her head.

"Don't worry, Tess. I'm always right here."

* * *

**AHHHHHHHHH YES THAT REALLY DID HAPPEN**

**Okay, so I promise this will all contribute to what I have planned. Also, Wessa is back! MEHEHEHEH (okay that was weird)**

**I'm sorry for any spelling or grammatical mistakes, I didn't really re-read it. I only scanned through it for obvious mistakes. Sorry!**

**So now that I'm done with exams _and_ NaNoWriMo, I'll hopefully update twice a week. Maybe Mondays and Thursdays.**

**Please tell me what you think of this chapter! And I'm always open to any suggestions you guys might have :)**

**(oh and... IT'S ALMOST CHRISTMAS!)**


	8. A Date

Will shoved his hands in his coat pockets and trudged through the snow covered pavement. He would've admired its beauty any other day, but at the moment, his thoughts were solely on Tessa.

After she found out about her cousin's death, she had excused herself to go home for not feeling well. Will had told Charlotte about what really happened and she immediately granted Tessa two weeks off. But Tessa, being the stubborn girl that she was, had insisted on just one day off.

She had come to work as if nothing had happened, but her eyes lost nearly all the blue in them. They were always grey and stormy, and they no longer twinkled.

Will had stayed nearby, ready to comfort her whenever she broke, but she held herself together the whole time, even when she was in her office by herself.

Will descended the stairs to the tube station. It was a Saturday, and he was certain that Tessa was still working at the waffle shop.

The sweet appetizing smell wafted through the bitter cold air as he exited the station. He immediately turned right and saw the long line to get waffles. Of course, Tessa was there. Will lingered to the side, trying to get her attention, but she was too focused on her work to notice. Instead of lining up, he stayed there, watching her work.

She was wearing a light brown sweater with frayed edges, and the customary white apron on top. Her silky hair was in a bun and a few loose strands framed her face perfectly. She smiled sweetly whenever she greeted a customer, and her eyebrows furrowed adorably when she balanced waffles on her hands.

"Are you just going to stand there and watch her all day?"

Will snapped his head to look behind him and saw Tessa's scar-faced co-worker smirking mischievously at him.

But Will wasn't about to be caught off guard.

He smiled back sweetly. "I was only looking for you, my love," he sang.

Her smirk fell off her face and she reddened, making the scar stand out even more.

"Will?"

He turned to look at Tessa, who was regarding him with tired eyes.

"Hello, Tess," he greeted, stepping to face her now that there was no one in line. "I knew you would work."

She smiled faintly. Will looked at his watch.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe it's your lunch break now."

"Go ahead, Tessa," Sophie said, appearing from behind her as she tied her apron on.

Tessa smiled gratefully and went to the back to take her things. She re-emerged with a purse and waved goodbye to Sophie.

"Where are we going?" she asked as she stood next to him.

"Do you like Brazilian food?"

"I never tried," she replied.

"Well, it's time that you did."

They turned the corner to South Molton Street and walked through the door of one of the many shops lined up along the tiny street. The sharp coldness of the air outside immediately dissipated and they were hugged by the warm, welcoming air.

A smiling waitress approached them. "Just two?"

Tessa nodded and the waitress led them to a table near the wall. Will pulled back a chair for Tessa and she smiled with pleasant surprise before sitting down. That smile alone was much more effective in thawing Will than the warmth of the restaurant was.

He took a seat across from her and took off his overcoat, draping it across the back of his chair.

The waitress handed them menus and left with a smile.

Will chose his favorites and put his menu down to see Tessa looking at him nervously.

"Umm... what's... good here?"

He was confused as to why she was so timid, when he remembered the night at the Thai restaurant. Oh. Guilt wrenched his gut.

"Hmm… what kind of food do you like? Beef? Chicken? Fish?"

She visibly perked up and replied, "Beef."

"Then try this one," he pointed to her menu.

The waitress came back with a tiny note pad and a pen ready in her hands. "Hi guys, what would you like to eat today?" she greeted with a slight exotic accent.

After ordering their food, she asked, "And what about the drinks?"

Tessa looked to him with a confused look.

"We'll both have Guarana," he said to her.

She nodded with a smile and re-read their order. "Great, that'll be a 15-minute wait," she said before leaving the two of them.

As soon as she left, Will's eyes fell on her. She was looking down, playing with the edges of her sweater.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

She looked up tiredly. "Don't. If I have to smile and answer that question one more time, I will punch someone."

Will smiled with amusement, even though her reply just worried her more.

Tessa's eyes softened and the corners of her mouth drooped down. After a passage of silence, she finally sighed. "I'm not okay. What do _you_ think?"

Will's heart ached as she looked down and played with her sweater again. She was miserable. Her usual perkiness was gone. And it hurt him to see her that way, even if he was never going to admit it to anyone. It was even hard to admit it to himself.

After all these years of closing himself off, Tessa just came along and made him rethink everything. And now, she was miserable and he didn't even know how to comfort her. He was good at fighting any physical harm, but at the moment, he was helpless.

"Tess."

"Yes?"

She looked at him expectantly, and he cursed himself for not thinking this through. But he was saved when the waitress came back with a tray of delicious-smelling food.

"This one's yours," she said as she set down a plate in front of Tessa. "And this is yours," she said to Will.

As they ate, Will managed to make jokes and –to his relief- Tessa managed to laugh at him. By the time they finished their food, things almost seemed normal again.

The cheque came and Will snatched it before Tessa could even take a look.

"How much do I have to pay?" she asked as she rummaged through he rbag for her wallet.

"It's fine," he replied, waving her off.

"Will, you can't possibly pay for us!"

"I actually have enough money, Tess."

"You know that's not what I meant." She finally took out her wallet. "How much do I have to pay?"

"It's my treat, Tess."

"Will!"

"Dear me, you're stubborn. But I already know that."

She scowled at him. "Why can't you just let me pay?"

"A gentleman never lets the girl pay on their date."

Tessa stiffened and Will felt like slapping himself. _A date? Nice, Will._

"I- That's not… what I meant," Will stammered out.

She bit her lip. "Um, yeah. Of course, I know," she replied quickly. Will couldn't help but think that she sounded a little disappointed.

"Shall we?" Will finally offered, breaking the awkward silence. Tessa smiled, got up, and put her coat and scarf on.

The two of them walked back to the waffle shop, and Will noticed that Tessa was slightly shivering.

"You alright?"

"Is winter in London always this freezing?" she asked with a hint of annoyance in her voice.

Will chuckled. "Yes. And it's still going to get colder, you know."

As they neared the waffle place, snow began to fall lightly. He watched as Tessa looked up with wonder. She tilted her head back and closed her eyes momentarily. When she opened her eyes, she was smiling.

"What, have you never been in snow before?" Will asked with and amused look.

"Of course I have. It does snow in New York, you know," she replied indignantly. Then she smiled and looked back to the sky. "I just always find it so… magical. And I believe that when we see something beautiful, we should enjoy it as much as possible, while it still lasts."

Will chuckled. Tessa really was just full of surprises.

"What?" she asked when she found Will looking at her.

"Nothing," he replied with a shrug.

They arrived at the waffle shop and Tessa went inside, bidding a goodbye to Will.

"Thank you for lunch!"

Will nodded and left, his eyes still slightly lingering on her as she came back with her apron on and began serving customers.

* * *

He didn't exactly know when Tessa's shift ended, so he came back at about 5.30 pm, but she was no longer there. He looked around and saw a glimpse of her going inside the tube station.

He opened his mouth to call her when he had a moment of revelation. Tessa never told him where she lived. Or anyone else, for that matter.

He followed her form a distance, trying to keep track of her through the crowded tube station.

Tessa entered one carriage and Will entered the one next to it. Even Will had to admit that this was a bit creepy. He took a glance through the tiny window into the next carriage. Tessa was still standing there, her arm looped around a bright yellow pole.

She stayed there, stop after stop after stop. Where did she live? They were in Zone 3 when she finally moved towards the door.

She exited and Will counted to 3 before going out to follow her. He kept quite a distance between them to prevent any chance of her seeing him.

As she turned a corner, Will began to wonder what his intentions were exactly. Why was he following her? He had just followed his instincts, but what was he going to do when he did find out where she lived? And if she found out, he would probably be skinned alive. Or worse, she would stop talking to him altogether.

He was brought back to the current situation when he realized that Tessa had stopped walking. She now stood in front of a decrepit building, rummaging in her bag. She produced a chain of keys and used one of them to open the door.

Will readied himself. Tessa stepped in and the door began to swing shut. He leaped forward silently -hopefully it was silent enough- and slid his foot to hold the door. He once again counted to three before inching the door open and peeking through.

The narrow hallway was empty and silent, except for the creaking and thumping of footsteps coming from the staircase to the left.

Will closed the door as silently as possible and tiptoed down the hallway to the mouth of the staircase. The stairs were covered in a musty carpet with a faded floral pattern. He crept up the staircase and hoped it wouldn't creak under his weight.

Will found himself in another empty hallway. He peeked around the wall to his left and saw her opening a door. As soon as he heard the door click shut, he silently walked and stood in front of it.

Now what? Will stood awkwardly in front of her door, trying to decide whether or not he should knock. If he did, she would probably freak out. Maybe he should just leave.

He whirled on his heels to leave when he heard a faint cry. In a second, Will's ear was pressed on the door. He could clearly hear the sound of someone sobbing inside.

Without thinking, he immediately knocked on her door. After a few seconds, the door inched open, a chain inside keeping it from opening completely.

"_Will?!"_

Half of her head was peeping through the crack, her one eye wide with fear, shock, anger, and… embarrassment?

The door slammed shut momentarily and he heard a rustle of chains before it opened wide. Tessa stood there, her eyes red-rimmed and wild, with tears streaks on her cheeks.

"_What are you doing here?" _she half-screamed, obviously angry.

Well, what _was_ her doing here?

"How did you even find me? Were you _following _me?"

"I-"

"You know what? Save it. Because I can't deal with any of this right now," she said, her voice beginning to break.

"Tess-"

"Don't you dare 'Tess' me! You have _no idea _just how-" she stopped short as her voice faltered and tears began to stream down.

She finally looked up at Will, who just stood there helplessly. "Just go. Please," Tessa pleaded through her shining eyes. She began to close the door, but Will stopped it.

"No," he said firmly.

"_No_?"

Will stepped inside her apartment. "I am _not_ about to leave you here. You can't just go on acting as if everything's alright, you know. We won't judge you for not being okay. In fact, we're worried that you seem to be holding it in. _I'm _worried."

Tessa looked at him, clearly at a loss for words. She just closed the door behind him and leaned her forehead against it.

"Tessa?"

Once again, she broke down crying. Will touched her shoulder and brought her to face him.

"Hey, I'm right here, alright? You can just talk about it."

"What's there to talk about? He's _dead_," she sobbed, before sinking to the ground.

Will found himself holding her against him to prevent her from dropping to the ground. Her legs were no longer supporting any of her weight, so he scooped her up and decided to go to a white sofa in the middle of the cramped apartment.

Tessa was leaning her head against his chest, still crying. It was painful to watch her so broken down, but he intended to be there for her as much as possible.

Within a few seconds, he was already in front of the sofa, carefully placing her on it. A part of him didn't want to let her go, so he could just hold her and hug her against him.

Will sat down on the rug in front of the sofa. "Do you want to talk?"

Tessa shook her head, still silently crying.

He looked around him. He supposed this was the living room, but it was connected directly to a kitchen, and there was only one other door besides the entrance. This was a very tiny place, but it was nicely decorated. It was cozy and warm, unlike his house, which was so vast and cold.

"I know, it's small. This whole place is probably smaller than your room alone," Tessa said quietly. Will turned his head to look at her and was surprised to find her cheeks flushed, and not just from crying.

"It's cozy," Will told her.

"You're just saying that 'cause you feel bad."

"Feel bad about what?"

"About the fact that I'm not exactly wealthy," she said so quietly it was almost inaudible despite the near complete silence surrounding them.

"I never meant-"

"That's why I have another job. That's why I live here. I can't afford it, Will."

Will didn't know what to say. He really didn't. He was speechless.

"I know your judging me right now, and if you don't want to be friends anymore or something-"

"_What_?" Will asked, incredulous and hurt. "Why would I not want to be friends with you? Because you're not dripping in pearls?"

Tessa bit her lip and looked down. "You were born with a silver spoon in your mouth, Will. You have everything you want. Why would you want to be friends with someone who-"

"It doesn't matter, Tess! You're still Tessa. Being less privileged does not make me love you less!" he blurted out.

Her eyes widened and she looked at him in shock. Great, now he just creeped her out. The silence between them seemed to stretch out for an eternity. He didn't dare speak anymore. He was probably just going to screw things up even more.

She finally took a deep breath and broke the slience. "Can you read for me?"

Will was surprised yet again. He smiled to himself. She really was unpredictable.

"What? Is it a weird thing to ask?" she asked, her cheeks once again coloring.

"No, of course not," he replied.

He got up and went to her bookshelf, scanning the titles. He picked out the book that he knew was her favorite.

Will sat back down on his previous spot on the rug and opened up the book to the first page.

Tessa was lying on her side, her eyes fixed on him intently.

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…"

* * *

**Hi guys! So this is a day late. Sorry about that. I'm actually in camp right now in Bali, but thankfully there's wifi.**

**Anyways, I hope you liked this chapter! I wanted to do one in Will's POV and I thought that this was the perfect opportunity. I didn't read through this, so I'm really sorry if there are any spelling/grammatical errors or any other mistakes. **

**That Brazilian restaurant is real but I only ate there once so I don't remember much of it. Oh and I'm going to London next week so I'll (hopefully) write in much more detail and accuracy!**

**I'll get the next chapter up by Monday or Tuesday. Thank you for reading, and especially for reviews, favorites, and follows! You guys are the best.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own anything mentioned above, and definitely not The Infernal Devices.**


	9. Fancy Dresses

"Alright, I'll see you at 5, Tess."

Tessa smiled gratefully at Will. "Yeah, see you later," she replied.

Tessa turned around to see Sophie smirking at her. She felt the heat rise to her cheeks and quickly walked past her to get her red apron.

Tessa completely avoided Sophie's eyes as she went back to the counter and began serving the few people that just appeared.

As they trailed off with warm waffles in their hands, Sophie finally confronted her.

"He seems sweet enough, but I don't trust him. He's too hot."

"What?" Tessa asked in confusion.

"He seems nice enough to date you, but I wouldn't trust him," Sophie said, her face thoughtful.

Tessa felt her pale cheeks redden again. She was beginning to think that maybe there was something wrong with her nerves because she always blushed profusely over the most trivial things.

"For the last time, we are _not_ dating," Tessa huffed, attempting to hide the flutter in her stomach. "And what do you mean, he can't be trusted?"

"Attractive boys who know how hot they are can't be trusted," Sophie recited, as if it came from some invisible rule book.

"What? That's ridiculous."

Sophie raised her eyebrows. "Yeah? Well, tell that to the giant scar on my face," she snapped.

Tessa looked at her in shock, her mouth slightly open. "Soph, I didn't mean- I'm sorry, I really didn't know-"

Sophie exhaled deeply. "Yeah, I know. I'm sorry. I'm just worried for you. I don't want you to end up hurt, Tessa."

Tessa smiled. "Thanks, Sophie. But I trust Will."

Sophie smiled back and put a hand on her shoulder. "Okay then. Just be careful, Tessa."

And with that, the topic was dropped. They continued to work until it was finally the end of their shift, and just as Tessa put on her warm overcoat, scarf, and gloves, Will appeared in front of the counter.

The employees who were now taking over their shift nodded politely at Will. He had been picking up Tessa nearly every week so they didn't even bother asking for his order.

Tessa raised the counter and got out, followed by Sophie. She leaned forward and squinted her eyes at Will.

"Hello."

Will looked at her with mild confusion. "Hello?"

Sophie nodded slightly and composed herself. "Yes, hello. I don't think we've ever officially met. I'm Sophie Collins," she said, offering her gloved hand.

Will looked at it suspiciously before finally taking it. "Hello, Sophie. I'm Will Herondale."

"Yes, I know," she said with a sly smile at Tessa.

Tessa began blushing. Again.

Before she could protest, however, Sophie bounded off into the tube station, laughing to herself.

Will turned to her with a wide mischievous grin. "So you really can't stop talking about me, can you?"

She shoved him lightly with a shoulder. "Oh please, don't flatter yourself."

"Well, let's go then."

* * *

They arrived in front of the Herondale mansion and Will pressed a button in his car that opened the gates to the driveway. After they parked, Will opened Tessa's door and they walked up the stairs together.

"So… what are you wearing for the Christmas party?" Will asked casually.

"A dress, obviously," Tessa replied with a roll of her eyes.

"Yes, but what kind of dress?"

Tessa raised her eyebrows and glanced sideways at him. "When did you become so interested in fashion?"

Will opened his mouth to protest, but seemed to come up with nothing. Tessa gave him a triumphant look before going up the giant grand staircase to Cecily's room, leaving him behind.

She knocked on the door.

"Who is it?" cried a voice from inside.

"It's Tessa!"

She heard a squeal and the light patter of footsteps before one of the double doors opened.

"Tessa! Come right in. He's still not here though," Cecily said, ushering her in.

Tessa automatically went to the corner of the room with beanbags and plopped down on one.

"Do you want anything to drink?" Cecily offered.

"No, I'm fine."

Cecily walked over to her and sat on another beanbag. "Okay, so my friend who's coming over… isn't exactly like most people," she said hesitantly.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, he's slightly… eccentric," she said slowly after finally finding the right word for it.

"Really? Am I only slightly eccentric to you?" said a voice from the door.

Cecily got up and whirled around in one swift motion before running and tackling him into a hug. Meanwhile, Tessa sat there staring at him, dumbfounded –and a bit rude.

Eccentric was a much too modest word. He seemed… mad. His clothes were so bright it made every other colour seem dull. He wore an electric blue shirt with a black sparkly belt. His pants were neon yellow and his spiky hair had hot pink frosted tips. It was a bit too much for Tessa's eyes to handle.

"Cecily, dear, I know you're glad to see me, but you're ruining my hair," he said with a smile.

Cecily pulled away. "Oh, it's been _ages_, Magnus!"

"I know, I know," he replied as his eyes fell on Tessa. "And is that your friend?"

"Yes! Oh, I'm being rude, not introducing you two to each other," she said, walking towards Tessa.

Tessa got up and Cecily snatched her hand, pulling her to a stop in front of Magnus. His eyes were peculiar and almost cat-like. He didn't have a British accent, and the angular bones of his olive-skinned face suggested an Asian heritage.

"Magnus, Tessa Gray. Tessa, Magnus Bane."

Tessa nodded shyly and Magnus leaned back slightly to take a good look of her. His eyes scanned her critically from head-to-toe. Tessa averted her eyes, unable to stand being looked at.

"Your eyes are _gorgeous_," Magnus finally said. "I know exactly the perfect dress for you."

Cecily clapped her hands in excitement. "Great! Let's get started!"

Magnus leaned through an open doorway and pulled in a suitcase, along with many dress bags.

For the next 4 hours, they tried on millions of different dresses. Cecily seemed to enjoy every second of it, and although Tessa was mesmerized by each of the breathtaking dresses, it was a bit overwhelming for her.

"Oh, Tessa. I think this one is perfect," Cecily said in awe. She was sitting on the edge of her bed with a dress bag lying in her arms. They had just decided that that dress was _the_ one.

Magnus' chin was placed in one of his hands, and his head was slightly tilted. "I like the last one better."

Tessa looked down at the navy blue chiffon spilling from her waist and down to the floor. "Magnus, how do you come up with these designs? Really, these are all amazing," she added in wonder.

Magnus just waved it off. "It's nothing really. I just draw whatever mad idea comes to my head," he replied lightly. "Anyways, let me look through the other dresses and see if anything looks better."

With that, he began going through the stack of dress bags, unzipping them slightly and taking a peek, then zipping it back up with a shake of his head or an odd comment.

As Tessa stood there watching Magnus, a thought popped into her head. "Oh, Cecily! I forgot to ask, how much are these dresses?"

Magnus shot straight up. "How much? Of course you don't have to pay, Tessa! You two are friends, so you have special privileges."

"Oh, Magnus. I can't possibly-"

"Yes, you can. Now be quiet and let me work," he said sternly, turning back to his work.

"Cecily, you didn't tell me! Now I feel horrible," Tessa whispered harshly.

"Oh, it's fine! He's always been a friend to The Shadowhunters. Especially to me and Will," she added with a grin.

Tessa sighed. "Fine. But I still feel bad."

"A-ha! I think this one might be it," Magnus said, walking over to Tessa with a black dress bag. She took it and went inside the walk-in closet.

Tessa came out with a huge smile on her face.

Cecily clapped her hands together. "Magnus! Yes! Definitely this one!" she squealed.

"Seriously Magnus, how?"

Magnus flipped his imaginary long hair. "It's my magic touch."

Cecily was still smiling at Tessa. "Yeah, definitely magic," she said absentmindedly.

"Okay, well that settles it!" Magnus chimed. "My job here is done. Ladies, it's been a pleasure."

"Oh, thank you so much, Magnus!" Cecily screeched, hugging him tightly again.

Tessa stepped towards him and grinned. "I've only just met you, but you really are amazing, Magnus."

Magnus opened his arms for a hug, which Tessa immediately gave to him. "Thank you," she said as she pulled away. "This is literally the nicest thing I've ever worn in my entire life."

"Well, you'll wear some nicer ones in the future," he replied with a wink. "Alright. I'll see you two at the party tomorrow!"

With that, he grabbed all his things and left the room. Tessa went back inside the walk-in closet and changed into the nightwear that she had brought with her.

Cecily had already hung up their dresses and was now lying down on one side of the bed, looking at her phone. She looked up as Tessa came out.

"Oh, you're sleeping on this side of the bed," she said, pointing to the empty space next to her. Tessa took a book from her bag and lied down next to Cecily.

"What book is that?"

"A Tale of Two Cities," Tessa replied.

"Oh, that one. Will's been reading that one a lot lately," Cecily said.

Tessa put the book down. "Really?"

"Yeah," Cecily replied, putting down her phone as well. She abruptly sat up cross-legged, so Tessa followed suit.

"Why do you sound so surprised?"

Tessa shrugged. "Will told me he hated the book."

She tried to seem like she didn't care, but in reality, her mind was turning. Why would he read it if he thought it was ridiculous? Unless, of course, he re-read it after Tessa told him it was her favorite book. But that seemed like a far-fetched theory.

"Well, it doesn't seem like it. In fact, I'm quite certain he'd be able to quote about quarter of the book by now."

Tessa felt the corners of her mouth tug up into a wide smile for no apparent reason.

"What?"

"Nothing. It's just… good to know that he's beginning to like the book."

Cecily yawned. "Well, I'm going to go to sleep. We have a lot of preparation to do tomorrow. Do you mind if I turn the lights off now? Or do you want to read some more?"

"No, it's fine. I'm just going to sleep too."

Cecily clicked a button by her bed and the room became pitch black. Tessa closed her book and put it on what she assumed was the bedside table before wriggling under the covers and pulling another thick blanket on top.

"Good night, Tessa," she heard Cecily's sleepy voice say.

"Good night, Cecily."

* * *

**Hello, guys! I'm really sorry for not updating the whole of last week! This chapter was originally about 4600 words, which is why it took so long to write. But I realized how ridiculously long that was so I split it into this chapter and the next -which I will post in a couple of hours.**

**This chapter was mostly to introduce Magnus and develop some relationships, but next chapter will be kinda really full.**

**I didn't really go through this chapter for tiny details so please pardon any spelling or grammatical errors!**

**Thank you for all your reviews, favorites, and follows! You guys are amazing :)**

**I appreciate all criticism -negative or positive- and I try my best to answer questions, unless the answer involves a spoiler for future chapters. S****o go ahead and pm me or leave a review!**

******DISCLAIMER: Once again, I own nothing mentioned above, including The Infernal Devices.**


	10. The Christmas Party

Will looked at his watch again. They had been getting ready since early on in the morning, and they were still not done? What exactly did they need to do? Will had just showered, put on his tuxedo, sprayed some cologne on and attempted to flatten his hair before walking downstairs. It took about half an hour at most.

He finally heard the clacking of heels on the marble floor upstairs. He cocked his head towards to the mouth of the hallway and smiled as his sister approached. But as Tessa appeared behind her, all the thoughts in his mind were knocked away. It was a bit of a deja vu, seeing her walk down the grand staircase like that. Only this time, she was quite literally the most beautiful thing he had ever laid his eyes on.

Her soft pink dress accentuated the blue in her bright eyes. Her silky brown hair was up in an intricate bun with a few loose strands perfectly framing her face, which looked even more exquisite with the makeup. She was blushing ridiculously, which made him want to smile, because she was still Tess, and she always would be no matter how much people tried to change her on the outside.

They had arrived at the bottom of the staircase, and Will knew he was staring, but he couldn't care less.

"You look beautiful, Tess," he finally managed to say, even though it seemed like an understatement to him. He couldn't help smiling when her cheeks turned even redder.

He continued to look at her, and she continued to look at her feet.

Finally, Cecily coughed awkwardly from beside them. "So… We should really get going."

* * *

The gates of The Institute were wide open, and bright light spilled from inside onto the dark moonlit concrete. Tessa had a sheer wraparound draped across her bare shoulders.

They entered the Institute, and followed a blue velvet carpet into the ballroom. It was exquisitely breathtaking. Tessa marveled at the giant chandelier that hung from the high ceiling, illuminating the giant expanse. There were giant windows that allowed a view of the starry night sky beyond it. A small orchestra played sweet music from one corner of the room. Elegantly decorated tables were scattered on one side of the room, with a long buffet table sitting against the wall adjacent to it. In another corner was the Christmas tree. It stood over 5 meters tall, with the magnificent string of lights blinking and lighting it up. The ornaments seemed to have a theme of red and silver. She stood close to it, looking up at the golden glowing star placed on the very top of the fresh-smelling tree.

"Hello, Tessa," greeted a familiar soothing voice from next to her.

She looked to her right, where Jem stood in a deep blue tuxedo. "Hey, Jem. Looking sharp," she said with a grin.

"Not so bad yourself, Miss Gray," he replied with his usual warm smile.

She curtsied in an exaggerated manner, with her head cocked to the side. "Why, thank you, Mr. Carstairs. I would never want to disappoint you."

He chuckled. "Oh, Tessa. I don't think you ever would," Jem said in a more serious tone.

Tessa smiled gratefully at him. She really was fortunate to have Jem's friendship. "Thank you, Jem."

"Hello, James," Will greeted, appearing from thin air.

"Will," Jem replied, giving him a big hug.

"Shall we eat something?" Will offered, nodding towards the table of food.

Tessa shrugged, which Will took as a yes. He dragged her over to the buffet table and began piling up his plate with a bit of everything. Tessa, on the other hand, only filled a quarter of her plate with food.

Will eyed her plate suspiciously. "Are you sure that's enough?"

Tessa rolled her eyes. "Yes, Will. My appetite's not as large as yours," she said, raising her eyebrows at his plate stacked high with food. The truth was, she was a bit worried that eating too much might produce a food baby, and her dress was quite tight.

"Fine, whatever suits you. Just don't faint halfway through the night, okay?"

Once again, Tessa rolled her eyes. They took a seat in one of the tables and ate in silence, until Cecily and Gabriel joined them. They were precariously close and Tessa saw Will stiffen from the corner of her eye.

Cecily took a seat next to Tessa and Gabriel sat next to Cecily. Tessa continued eating until she felt Will lean in to her.

"I don't like the way Lightworm is looking at my sister," he whispered into her ear.

Tessa glanced at them and saw Gabriel's bright green eyes fixed on Cecily with something close to adoration and longing. Tessa had already known something was going on from their very first meeting, so it wasn't much of a surprise for her. Obviously, the same couldn't be said for Will.

Tessa tried to hide a smile, but Will immediately caught the look. "You know something, don't you?"

"What are you talking about, Will?"

"Really, Tess. Just tell-"

"Hello, you two. What are we whispering about?" asked Jem as he set down his plate and took a seat beside Will.

Will turned to him. "Is there something going on between my sister and Gabriel?" he asked, panic beginning to seep into his voice.

Jem raised his eyebrows calmly and averted his silver-rimmed eyes towards the other side of the table. Gabriel and Cecily were now talking and laughing together, completely oblivious to the three pairs of eyes observing them.

Jem looked down at his food.

"James? Tell me, do you know anything about this?"

Jem merely smiled at him before continuing to eat. Will groaned in frustration.

"Oh, what is it now, Will?" Gideon asked, suddenly appearing and putting down his plate on the table.

Will glared at him, which caused Gideon to raise his hands in surrender. He looked over to Jem with a questioning look, which Jem responded to by nodding slightly towards Gabriel and Cecily, who were still engrossed in the conversation.

"Ah," Gideon said, his face taking on a look of understanding. He finally sat down next to Gabriel, but Gabriel didn't seem to take any notice of his brother's arrival.

All four of them were now staring intently at the pair, hoping to gain their attention. Finally, Gabriel seemed to sense something and slowly tilted his head towards them. His eyes widened when he met Will's furious glare.

"Why, you little-"

"William, it's a Christmas party. No cursing, please," Jem stopped him.

Will humphed in protest and resorted to just glaring at him icily.

"What did I do wrong?" Gabriel asked, looking around the table. They all just shook his head at him.

Cecily looked at Will and rolled her eyes. "Honestly, you have to stop being so overprotective. You can't control who I like and flirt with!"

Gabriel was gaping at her now and his face had turned a deep shade of crimson. He took a quick glance at Will, who looked as if he was ready to use the cutlery in his hands to decapitate Gabriel. He gulped slightly and rose from his seat.

"I'm going to just… yeah."

He took off and Cecily groaned. "Really, Will? Did you have to ruin everything?" she asked in annoyance before going after Gabriel.

As soon as she was out of earshot, Will exploded in a string of curses.

"_Will_," Jem warned sternly.

His curses ceased, but he that didn't stop him from talking. "I can't believe Gabriel would go after _my_ sister like that! And Cecily is flirting right back at him! Unbelievable. If I could just-"

"Okay, Will. Slow down there," Tessa said, putting a hand on Will's clenched fist. He seemed to calm down slightly.

"I'm going to take a walk," he declared before getting up and going through on of the doors to a small garden.

"I'll go after him," Jem said with a sigh, setting down his knife and fork on his still full plate.

"No, it's fine. I'll go," Tessa offered. Jem nodded gratefully at her and proceeded to finish his food.

As Tessa walked through the door, the cold winter met her and bit her skin. She pulled tighter on the flimsy wrap around her shoulders, hoping it would provide a bit more warmth.

She saw Will's silhouette outlined by the light spilling from inside the ballroom.

"Will."

He looked back over his shoulder. "I'm really not in the mood to talk about my sister and Lightworm right now."

Tessa stood next to him. "I wasn't going to," she replied. And somehow, it was true. She didn't just come out here to talk about Cecily's love life. But she didn't exactly know what she was planning on doing either.

The soft melodies floated out from the ballroom into the open night sky. They looked at each other for what seemed like centuries. His jet-black tuxedo made his eyes bluer, and Tessa felt herself falling into it.

Will stepped back and held out a hand. "May I have this dance?"

Tessa smiled and took his rough, strong hand. "I thought you'd never ask."

And that's what they did. Under the moonlight, in the bitter winter air, they danced to the faded music of the party and the crowd. Will led them in a waltz.

"You know how to waltz?" Tessa asked incredulously.

"We don't just fight here, you know. We have lessons on other basic necessities," Will replied.

"And waltzing is a basic necessity?"

Will chuckled. "According to my father, it is. And where did you learn how to waltz? I'm quite sure they don't teach it in normal schools."

Tessa gave him a rueful smile. "When I was little, Nate and I used to dance in the living room. I would step on his toes, and he'd teach me all these dances. Then my Aunt Harriet would watch from the sofa, clapping and humming along," she said, her voice breaking with the weight of the memory.

"I'm sorry," she suddenly said, stopping and dropping her hands from Will's. "I just… need a moment."

She turned away and took deep breaths. She thought going to this party would be a good distraction, a night where she would just have fun and enjoy herself. But even a stupid waltz was making her tear up.

"I- I'm sorry. I didn't know, Tess."

"It's not your fault," Tessa whispered.

He caught her hand. "Do you need anything? A drink, maybe?" he offered.

"No, I'm fine now. I think."

"It's okay if you just want to stay out here, away from all those people."

She nodded and they stood there, staring out into the garden in a welcome silence. And suddenly, it dawned on her why she wanted to see Will out here in the first place.

"Will, I.. haven't gotten a chance to say this, and this is much too overdue," she began. "But… Thank you. Thank you for being there for me, even when I didn't want to admit I needed someone. I don't know how I can ever repay you and-"

"Repay me?" Will cut off incredulously. "Tess, you being okay is more than enough payment for me," he continued, his eyes softening.

Somehow, that statement made Tessa feel bold and she took a step, leaving only mere inches between them. She saw Will's breath hitch. Tessa herself couldn't breathe properly, and her heartbeat was loud enough to block out the music playing inside.

Will leaned down, his breath hot on her face. His blue eyes disappeared behind his eyelids and she closed her eyes as well. Tessa waited for his lips to meet hers, but it never happened.

Her eyes fluttered open and Will's face was still inches from hers, but now his dark blue eyes were open. The longing in them was now replaced by fear and hesitation.

"Will?" Tessa managed to breathe out.

His breaths became shorter and he suddenly stepped back. She immediately felt the loss of his body heat and shivered.

In one swift motion, Will took his overcoat off and draped it around her shoulders, before stepping back once again.

"I- I'm sorry. You should go in, you look like you're freezing."

And with that, he left.

* * *

Will crouched down and put his head in his hands. He had come close to the end of it all. No, Tessa could not love him. He would just end up hurting her. And he couldn't bear the thought of hurting Tessa. He couldn't bear the thought of hurting anyone he loved. If they ever loved him back, they would end up hurt, one way or another. And Will would be the cause of it.

He couldn't let anyone in again, not after Ella. Will took deep breaths to calm himself down.

* * *

"_Will? Oh my God, Will! No!"_

_The snake recoiled for a moment, before darting its head forward. Will widened his eyes. He had not expected it to come forward so quickly._

"_Will!"_

_The snake bared its venom-filled fangs, ready to sink into Will's flesh. But he saw a blur of black in front of him and a thump._

_The bite never came._

_Will looked up and saw the snake slithering away. Lying on the soft green grass was his sister. Everything was still. So, so still._

_And then she began screaming._

"_Ella? Ella!" Will cried. He ran forward and stumbled onto the lump that was his older sister. Tears ran down her cheeks. Her hands were clamped over the side of her neck._

"_Mommy! Daddy!" Will screeched at the top of his lungs. He turned back to Ella, who's cries began to diminish into a whimpering sound. "Are… you… okay?"_

_Will nodded, tears streaking his chubby cheeks. "Why are you hurting, Ella?"_

_She opened her mouth to reply, but instead she began gasping. Her hands dropped down to clutch her chest and Will saw it. A part of her neck had an icky bubble on it. Will began to scream even louder._

_And then his parents were with them._

"_Ella? By the Angel, what happened?"_

"_Her neck! It's swollen!"_

"_Can you breathe, honey?"_

"_We have get her to the hospital, Edmund!"_

_His dad scooped Ella in his arms, while his mother carried him inside._

_A week later, Will was dressed up in black and standing in front of a wooden coffin. In his opinion, it was much too big for his sister's tiny figure._

* * *

Tessa stood there with a stone in her stomach. She was stupid to think that he liked her that way. This was exactly what happened the last time he suddenly shut himself out.

She was stupid, and pushy, and naïve. Honestly, why would he even like her? He could get any girl at all, and there were many who were prettier than her. And now she had ruined one of her sweetest friendships.

Tessa told herself it was her fault, but still, the tears spilled out. Her chest tightened and her breaths were labored. She had always thought that the term 'heartache' was an exaggerated expression, but obviously she was wrong. It felt like someone was gripping her heart and squeezing it tight, making her chest feel closed off.

Tessa stumbled backwards and fell into something hard. She began to turn around, but something solid and icy cold grabbed her from behind. She gasped and tried to squirm away, but its grip was too strong.

She screamed at the top of her lungs, still wriggling in the deadly grip. A piece of cloth was clapped over her mouth roughly, and she felt the warm blood trickle from her lips from the impact. The hand felt bony and cold, like its arms.

A sharp smell reached her nose. Tessa began to panic even more. She tried to hold her breath, but she could still smell the sting wafting into her nostrils. She felt herself being dragged away and tried to kick backwards, but her head was becoming light and her vision was blurring. Her muscles felt weak and she just felt like sleeping.

Tessa tried to move away, but sleep was clouding over her heavily, and she began to lose consciousness.

"Tessa!" cried a distant voice.

The last thing she saw before the darkness took over was a familiar figure with messy black hair running from far far away.

* * *

Will's thoughts were interrupted by a blood-curdling scream.

Without thinking, he immediately ran to where he thought the source of the voice was. He heard more yells, muffled this time and ran towards the sound. He found himself in the area of the balcony where he had left Tessa. And there she was, still in the same spot. Only this time, a robot-like creature was holding her with one arm, while the other hand pressed a cloth to her face. Her eyelids were beginning to droop down, and her bright eyes were dimming.

"Tessa!"

Will sprinted towards them as the creature began to drag her limp body away. But they were too far, and he knew that even though he was faster than most, he wouldn't be able to catch up with them. They began to disappear into the darkness, and Will lost sight of them completely.

He had lost Tessa.

* * *

**Hello again! (I feel like this hello is slightly unnecessary because I literally said it 2 hours ago. But anyways.)**

**Yes, this chapter is jam-packed, but I hope you guys like it. I won't be able to update tomorrow, because I'll be leaving for London (YAY first-hand experience to write this fic). I'll probably update again on Thursday? (But I'm not promising anything)**

**I actually have an extremely detailed picture of Tessa's dress in my head, but a) Will probably knows nothing about dresses. b) as SilverCarstairs said, it's nice to leave the dress to your imagination. So I just gave a colour and the rest is all up to you. But if anyone wants to know what I imagined, just pm me :)**

**Also, CECILY AND GABRIEL! I've been trying to put this in somewhere, and then this scene left a gaping wide hole of opportunity so yay. And... I'm sorry for not giving Wessa's first kiss. (Okay not really oops)**

**You can leave a review if you have any comments, questions, or if you just want to vent! :)**

**DISCLAIMER: I still don't own anything mentioned above. **


	11. M

Will sunk to his knees. The world whirled around him. He only saw streaks of green and blobs of disfigured faces.

"She's gone," he whispered. "She's gone."

"William, listen to me. We are not giving up," a voice said sternly in his ear.

"Will!" another voice yelled in panic. "We have to do something!"

He suddenly felt a sharp sting on his cheek, which brought him back to his senses. There was a burning sensation on his left cheek and he looked up in shock.

"Will, let's go save Tessa," Jem said in the same stern tone, his silver-rimmed eyes gazing steadily into Will's own eyes.

"Yes," Will murmured, getting to his feet with the help of Jem. "Yes," he repeated in a stronger voice.

"By the Angel, Will, what on earth is going on?" Charlotte asked as she ran up to them, her hand lifting up the skirts of her long dress.

"Tessa's missing," Jem replied curtly.

"Tessa?" Charlotte asked in clear distress. "What do you mean? Where did she go?"

"She was taken by a… robot monster… thing," Will replied unsurely as he straightened himself out. How else was he supposed to describe the thing that took Tessa?

Charlotte began pacing as the crowds of guests around them began to murmur to each other.

Finally, Charlotte stopped pacing and looked at Jem and Will.

"Alright, let's gather up the Combat department," she whispered fiercely.

Five minutes later, after going around the party and gathering up members of said department, they had entered one of the nearest meeting rooms.

Charlotte stood at the head of the meeting table. "As some of you may know, one of our employees, an intern named Tessa Gray, has been kidnapped. The only witness to Miss Gray's abduction is Will. According to him, she was seized by a robot creature."

At this, some of the adults exchanged looks. A man whom William despised spoke up. "I'm sorry, but that's ridiculous. A robot? He must have watched too many movies, Charlotte."

Will glared at him. "Excuse me, Mr. Lightwood, but I know what I saw. If you choose to dismiss it as a figment of my imagination, even after all the things we Shadowhunters have encountered, then I'm not sorry to say that you must be very thick," he snapped.

"William!" Charlotte yelled in distress. "Don't speak to Mr. Lightwood in that manner," she scolded. But then she turned to Benedict with a grim look. "However, Benedict, he has a fair point, even though it was conveyed in a very ill manner. We have dealt with many odd things that even the police can't handle. Why should a robot be so improbable?"

Benedict looked at her with resentment and Will looked at him in loathing. He had always vied for Charlotte's position as the head of the London Institute, which automatically put her as head of the Combat Department in London as well. Everyone knew that he was trying to appeal to the current CEO of the company, Josiah Wayland, to replace Charlotte as she was young and incompetent.

"Te- Miss Gray was abducted from the garden right outside the ballroom, and Jem managed to run to the fence and see the car that they had driven off in," she said, nodding to Jem.

Will looked over to Jem, who was sitting next to him. Even now, he managed to mask his panic with calmness. It was just that Will had known him for long enough to see the telltale signs of distress peeking through his soothing peaceful mask.

"They were in a black Mercedes-Benz sedan and there was a logo visible on the side of the car. Cecily has helped us draw the logo, according to Jem's observation." At this, Charlotte held up a piece of paper with a pencil sketch of a logo. Will looked closer at the letter 'M' surrounded by a two circles. It looked familiar, and Will racked his brain for a recollection of where he saw it.

And then it hit him.

"I know what company that's from."

* * *

Tessa came to her senses, but a foreboding feeling in the pit of her stomach told her not to open her eyes. There was a light whirring sound in the background and a sensation of moving. She was lying down on something hard and leathery.

Suddenly, a honk and a skidding sound.

She was in a car.

Immediately, the past events came rushing back to her. The sharp smell of chloroform, strong metal arms holding her down, and right before that, rejection.

There was an ache in her chest as she remembered Will's reaction. Even though she had thought-

No. She was being abducted and all she could think of was William? She had to get herself together.

A ringtone rang out in the silent car.

"Hello?" a high-pitched voice answered from what Tessa assumed was the front seat of the car.

"Yes, Sir. Yes, we have her, Sir. We're on our way, Sir. Thank you very much, Sir," the voice replied. A short silence ensued before another voice, nearly identical to the previous one spoke up. From right above Tessa.

"What did he say?" she asked in what seemed like borderline creepy enthusiasm.

"He's proud of us, sister," the other replied almost giddily.

_That's just great_, Tessa thought. _Two sisters working together to kidnap me._

"Weeks of planning and we've finally got her!" the sister above her said, her voice so high-pitched it almost made Tessa wince.

"Yes, I never thought she would be alone. That boy was always hovering over her like an overprotective bug," the sister in front said with disgust.

Tessa felt a pang of sadness hit her again at the mention of Will.

"Well, what matters is that we've got her now, my dear sister. He would be most pleased with us for getting this pretty little thing," she said, stroking Tessa's hair. Tessa had to fight the strong urge to swat her hand away.

"Is she still asleep?" the voice in front asked.

"Yes, she hasn't moved a bit."

"That's odd. The effects should have worn off by now."

Tessa began to panic. She had to wake up soon or they'd be suspicious. It was time to use her acting skills. That is, if she had any.

Tessa slowly opened her eyes and tried to look dazed for a few seconds before leaping to a sitting position. Apparently, that was a horrible decision. Her head felt heavy, like someone had poured lead into her skull. She gripped it with one hand and looked at the car windows. They were all blacked out. She focused her eyes on the lady sitting right next to her with what she hoped looked like panic, pain, and accusation.

"Where am I? Who are you? Why am I-"

"Hush now, dear," cooed the woman sitting calmly on the other side of the car. Good. They didn't suspect anything. Maybe she should try acting when she got out of here. _If _she got out.

The woman reached out a hand to Tessa, but Tessa pressed herself against the corner of the car to get as far away as possible from her.

The woman was plump with jet black deep-set eyes. Her stringy greyish-black hair was in a severe bun and the features of her face were sour and pointed. She gave Tessa a sickly smile.

"Come now, dear Tessa. There's no use trying to fight us."

Tessa took a deep breath. "But who are you? And what do you want with me?"

"My, my. So many questions," said the sister in front. She craned her neck back, giving Tessa a full view of her face. This sister, unlike the one sitting opposite Tessa, was stick thin with bony features. Her hair was on the verge of turning to a bleached white, drained of life and color. Both of them, Tessa realized, were wearing extremely bright clothing that seemed to contrast their whole appearance completely. The plump sister was wearing a bright lemon yellow ensemble, while the bony one wore shocking pink.

"Well, I've only voiced a tiny portion of the many questions in my mind right now, and I have yet to receive an answer," Tessa snapped back.

"You're a feisty one, aren't you?" remarked the thin sister with slight amusement.

"I suppose a little introduction won't hurt," said the plump one. "I'm Mrs. Dark."

"And I'm Mrs. Black," said the other. "We're sisters."

Tessa couldn't help raising her eyebrows. Really? Mrs. Dark and Mrs. Black? She might as well call them The Dark Sisters, then.

"Now, you must behave yourself. We're nearly there," Mrs. Dark said, looking at Tessa expectantly.

"Nearly _where_?"

"That's not for you to know, my precious little thing," Mrs. Black said in what seemed like her sweet voice. Tessa nearly shuddered at the nickname.

"All you have to know is that you're getting the _huge_ honour of meeting The Magister," Mrs. Dark added with a small clap of her hands.

"And who's The Magister?"

"Enough questions, Tessa," snapped Mrs. Black. "You really are getting on my nerves now."

The car stopped abruptly and Tessa had to hold out a hand to prevent herself from falling off her seat. The car door right behind her opened and she nearly fell again, only barely saving herself by holding on to the seat. She straightened herself out and exited the car as gracefully as possible.

She was in some sort of warehouse, with concrete flooring. The space was mostly empty, except for the car, which was right in the middle of the room. But Tessa could see evidence of work being done recently. So she wasn't in an abandoned warehouse.

The car door had been opened by the driver, who was now standing in front of Tessa as if he was ready to pounce on her if she tried to escape. But as Tessa looked closely beneath his cap, she noticed that the surface of his face was smooth, completely empty of any features. Not only that, his skin was shiny and gold.

Tessa staggered back and the driver's hand shot out. His hand was like a gold skeletal hand, with long stiff fingers. It gripped Tessa's wrist tightly, the cold bony metal biting her skin.

"This way, dear. Hurry," Mrs. Black ushered, waving her hand impatiently.

The driver released Tessa's wrist, which was now red. Tessa went quickly around the car to where The Dark Sisters were standing. They ascended a nearby metal staircase, but as Tessa looked back, she saw a familiar gold logo printed on the side of the car. There was an 'M' in the middle. Did it stand for Magister?

No, the logo was too familiar. She had last seen it when…

Tessa's heart dropped.

She had last seen it on the paperwork dealing with Nate's death.

And now Tessa knew what the 'M' stood for. She knew who The Magister was. She knew who had kidnapped her, and who had possibly _murdered_ Nate.

It was Mortmain all along.

* * *

**Hey guys! I hope you liked this chapter. Sorry if it took kinda long for me to post this one :(**

**So yeah. Tessa's kidnapped by Mortmain. But Will's figured it out! Yay.**

**Oh, and thank you for all the reviews (and strong reactions) to the last chapter! Also for every follow and/or favorite! :)**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own The Infernal Devices or anything mentioned above.**


	12. Axel Mortmain

Tessa followed The Dark Sisters as they walked through winding corridors. The robot creature was right behind Tessa, gripping her arms too tightly. They trudged in silence, with only the sound of their heels clacking on the cement floor.

After what seemed like hours, the sisters stopped walking as they reached a door at the end of a hallway. They whirled around and proceeded to fuss about Tessa, fixing her hair, her dress, her posture, and every other small thing.

"We had very good timing in taking her," Mrs. Black said cheerfully as she smoothed down Tessa's dress.

"Yes, she's already dressed up! Saves us so much time and work," Mrs. Dark chirped.

They stepped back and looked her up and down critically. They looked at each other and smiled in what Tessa could only describe as a sinister way. The sisters then began fixing themselves, before finally knocking on the door.

"Enter," commanded a muffled voice from inside the room. Mrs. Black opened the door carefully.

The room beyond looked like an office. A desk in the middle with papers and stationery, two chairs in front of it for guests, a fireplace, and a bookshelf. Sitting on the chair behind the desk was a man with slightly graying hair wearing a tweed suit. He smiled as they entered.

"Finally," he said, standing up and walking around his desk towards them.

The two sisters immediately stepped back, leaving Tessa standing in the middle of the room as he circled her slowly, like an eagle watching its prey before attacking. This only made Tessa jut her chin up higher in an attempt to convince them –but mostly, herself- that she wasn't scared.

"Oh, I'm being rude, aren't I? I'm Axel Mortmain, founder of Mortmain & Co.," he finally said as he stopped in front of her.

Tessa clenched her fists and gave him a cutting glare.

"You don't seem surprised, Miss Gray," he remarked with cold amusement.

More glaring.

"Okay, then. I suppose you would like to know why you're here," Mortmain began as he sat back down on his chair. He gestured towards Tessa to sit in one of the chairs in front of his desk, but Tessa stayed grounded to her spot with a look of loathing blooming on her face.

Mortmain folded his hands together. "I will not tell you everything yet, not until it is all done, but for now, you should know that _you_, my dearest Tessa, are my bride-to-be."

* * *

"Are you sure, Will?" Charlotte asked.

"Yes, Charlotte! I spent countless of hours with Tessa helping her deal with her brother's death and this logo," he pointed to the piece of paper, " was on most of the paperwork."

"Alright then. Can someone find out the location of their office in London?" Charlotte asked.

"Already on it," Gideon said, typing furiously into his phone.

"Good. Everyone, prepare and get your weapons. Since we have guests, we will meet in the garage in 10 minutes," Charlotte said, dismissing them. Everyone in the room rose to their feet and hurried out of the room.

"Jem," Will said as he gripped his best friend's arm. "Why do you think Tessa's been taken in by Mortmain & Co.?"

"I don't know, Will. But what matters now is that we get Tessa, right?"

Will nodded in silent agreement as they split up to their respective offices to retrieve their weapons. Will opened the secret compartment in his bookshelf and took out a dagger and two handguns. _That should be enough_, he thought.

Ten minutes later, they were all gathered in the garage of The Institute. It was a huge space filled with rows of cars, a dozen of which were Institute office cars.

"He has an office in town and a factory in the countryside. Henry, Jem, Gabriel, Gideon, Will, and Cecily are going with me to the countryside. Everyone else, to the office in town."

Will smiled slightly. He would be with the people he trained with, so their team would be much more effective. Most importantly, Jem was with him.

They began to disperse into different cars when a voice interjected them. "And why are all the children with you? Why are there more people going to the factory?" Benedict asked. "What if-"

"We are not children," Will snapped, looking back towards Benedict and glaring at him.

"It's okay, father," Gideon said, putting a hand on his father's shoulder.

"No, I think it's a highly unwise decision on Charlotte's behalf. Maybe she-"

"As Will said, Benedict, they are no longer children. In fact, they're all very agile and skilled, and I would go so far to say that they might be as skilled as the elders, if not more," Charlotte said firmly. "The factory will no doubt be much larger than the city office, which is why we need more people searching it.

"So if you have anymore enquiries or problems with the plan, then please voice them quickly, as Tessa is running out of time here," she finished with a sharp look at him.

Benedict looked at her indignantly before turning around abruptly and walking to a car.

Charlotte breathed out a sigh of relief and quickly entered the passenger seat with Gideon ready next to him in the driver's seat.

Will was ready to drive in the car next to them as others clambered into the two cars. Will entered the address into a GPS and sped out of the garage. Jem was right next to him, helping him navigate.

Will was driving dangerously fast even though the streets weren't completely empty of cars, and as they skidded to a stop right behind another car, Cecily screamed from the back seat.

"Will! We nearly crashed!" she yelled out in panic.

"Yeah, nearly. We won't," Will replied shortly, stepping on the gas pedal as the car in front of them turned a corner.

* * *

"_WHAT?" _Tessa yelled in disbelief. Her face was scrunched up and crimson in boiling fury.

"Ah, she does speak."

"Excuse me, did you say '_bride_'?"

Mortmain leaned back with a smug smile. "Yes, my dear."

"Stop calling me that," Tessa said, her voice shaking from shock and rage. "I am _not_ marrying you. What makes you think I would _ever_ want to?"

"I'm glad you asked that. You see, I know you love your Shadowhunter friends, which makes my job all too easy."

"I don't understand what that has to do with anything."

"It's simple really," he said with a slight shrug. "You don't marry me, I kill your friends."

Tessa scoffed, trying to mask her panic. "And how do you plan on doing that? They're not completely helpless in fighting, you know."

"Oh, I know. That's why I built these," he said, pressing a button on his desk.

The door through which Tessa entered opened and a robot -the exact same as the driver, but without clothes- came in.

It walked over next to Mortmain.

"These robots are very hard to destroy, and they're very deadly. I seriously doubt that your friends would last long against them," he said lightly, giving the robot a pat on its shoulder. He smiled at Tessa before sitting back down.

"But... But _why_?" Tessa sputtered out.

"You know much too little at this point, and attempting to explain the whole thing to you now would be much too tedious. For now I can only say that I need you to get what I want," he finished, giving her a wicked smile.

"_So_, do you have anymore questions?"

* * *

**Hi! Sorry for not updating for quite a while... So this chapter is a bit short, but yeah. _Hopefully_** **I can update right after New Years. If I'm not too crazed by Sherlock (I will definitely go crazy). I'm already mentally unstable because of Doctor Who, and now Sherlock... Yeah. **

**Thank you for the lovely reviews, and for the favorites and follows! :)**


	13. A Small Surprise

Tessa sat stiffly on the edge of the bed. The Dark Sisters had shoved her inside this unoccupied bedroom earlier after her conversation with Mortmain.

She was all alone now, and she felt as if the whole world was folding in on itself, crushing her and trapping her. Before she knew it, her cheeks were moist with streaks of tears and her body was shaking with sobs.

She internally chastised herself for being such a mess. But it wasn't just the kidnapping, it was everything else as well. She had been unable to write to Nate to tell her how she was because he was, well, gone. She had always told him everything, which made her feel better. But now, there was no one and everything was just piling up. His death being one of the major things that she needed to talk about.

The icing on the cake was something much more recent. The tragedy that was the almost kiss with Will. It was something that had been cooking for a long time. At first, Tessa had denied her own feelings when she realized what was happening. She knew he didn't care. But the way he had acted... It had given her a glimmer of hope. False hope. She had wanted to believe it so badly that she simply fell for it. She took a leap and she fell just short of the edge, and now she was falling down a pit. A deep one, given the amount of belief she had had in him.

Maybe... Maybe it was better to just give up. What was the point of anything anymore? She had no family, she was struggling financially, and she was now captured with small chance of escape.

_No_. Despite everything going on, there was still a small stubborn voice inside her that refused to give up. It was like a small light flickering in the distance, and she was freezing. She reached for its warmth and tried to have faith in it. No, she was better than this. She had gone through hell, and she could now rise back up.

Tessa took deep breaths to calm herself. She wiped her cheeks and was surprised to find clear tears. Apparently Cecily had applied waterproof make-up on her. She silently thanked her, wherever she was.

Wait, _Cecily_. Cecily must have had noticed that she was gone by now, but then again, she could mistake Tessa's absence as her just going back home.

A blurred memory surfaced in her mind. A voice, screaming her name as she lost consciousness. Tessa hoped it was an actual memory if it meant that someone had seen her being taken. Then maybe, they might be looking for her. They might have called the police or something.

All at once, Tessa had hope surging through her again. She had a chance of being saved.

* * *

Will swerved the car around the corner. He heard Cecily whimper in the backseat.

"I'm sorry, Cecy," he breathed out. He felt guilty for making Cecily panic, but he had to keep going as fast as possible. He had to get to Tessa.

"Now we just follow the road," Jem said.

Will stepped on the gas pedal and the car lurched forward even faster. The highway wasn't crowded and he easily slipped among the cars and overtook them.

"Where's Charlotte's car?" he asked.

"I haven't seen them at all," Jem replied, craning his neck backwards to get a better look.

"How many more kilometers?"

"116." The car lurched forward. "Well, 115 now."

* * *

The door was flung open.

"Hello, Tessa. It's time to meet The Magister again," Mrs. Black said in a singsong voice.

Tessa had been lying in bed staring at the ceiling, her mind swirling with thoughts and plans. She got off the bed and walked out the door, where The Dark Sisters were waiting with smiles that were painful to look at.

They walked down the labyrinth of nearly identical halls in silence.

"What do you want?" Tessa snapped as she entered his office.

Mortmain raised his hands in surrender. "I just thought you might want to see how your Shadowhunter friends are doing," he said.

"What do you mean? Are they here?" Tessa asked hopefully.

"No."

The answer gave Tessa both disappointment and relief. If they were here and Mortmain was calm, something must be wrong.

"Then where are they?"

"Oh, I don't just have one office, my dear-"

"Stop calling me that," Tessa said bitterly.

Mortmain went on as if there was no interruption. "-and they seem to be finding out just how powerful my clockwork creatures are," he finished.

"'Clockwork creatures'? You mean those robots?"

"I suppose you may call them that."

Instinctively, Tessa's hand flew up to her throat and gripped her clockwork angel. Clockwork. They were both clockwork.

Mortmain noticed this. "I see you have your own clockwork device there," he said softly, his eyes looking at the angel almost endearingly. Tessa immediately switched the subject to bring his attention away.

"What's happening to them? To the Shadowhunters?" she asked in distress.

Mortmain snapped his head up. "Oh, don't worry. The people in your beloved group of friends aren't there. These are just other Shadowhunters," he said nonchalantly.

Tessa felt guilty about the tiny bit of relief that rushed through her. But there was something else nagging at her.

"And what about the police?"

This time, Mortmain looked at her with genuine confusion. "What about the police?"

"Are they also fighting your clockwork creatures?"

Mortmain looked at her for a while before almost bursting into laughter. He smiled at her superiorly.

"What?" Tessa asked in confusion.

"They never told you?" he asks. "And here I thought they had trusted you enough to tell you."

Tessa remained silent, letting her cutting glare communicate her annoyance and frustration.

Mortmain stepped closer to her.

"Didn't you know? The Shadowhunter Company isn't just a business company," he said in a low voice. He leaned in closer to her ear and Tessa had to fight the strong urge to bat his head away. "No, that's only a cover. A façade that gives them power, connections, and funds. They're true purpose is a somewhat... noble purpose. They're true purpose is to protect the rest of the world," he finished, finally backing away from Tessa again.

"You aren't making any sense-"

"Think, Tessa. Think. Did you think that they learned how to fight as a matter of self-defense? For fun?"

Tessa thought over it. They weren't just good at fighting, they were amazingly skilled. She remembered seeing papers on Charlotte's desk that had listed numerous weapons. Accidentally walking into a meeting and Charlotte ushering her out quickly, seemingly flustered.

"But there's the police for that," Tessa reasoned.

"Some things are too big for the police to handle. Too complicated for authorities to deal with. So they work together with The Shadowhunters, because they've been handling these things for many decades now. They've developed weapons and techniques to deal with things that aren't so... mundane, I suppose."

Tessa looked down. It was a lot to take in. Too complicated for the police to handle? What did that even mean?

"Then why are you so convinced you'll win? You just said that they specialize in things that are out of the ordinary, which is a category your creatures probably fall into. They have special weapons. How will you even win?"

Mortmain chuckled. "Don't you think I've thought it through? My clockwork creatures are made of a special blend of elements that make them stronger than most materials. Strong enough to hold up for quite a while. Probably long enough to destroy them," he finished with a wicked smile.

Basically, they were doomed.

A laptop screen came to life and with it, the sound of gunshots and grunting. Mortmain flipped the laptop around and offered it to Tessa. She stepped forward tentatively towards Mortmain's desk.

The screen looked to be from a surveillance camera situated in the top corner of a room. In the room itself was utter chaos. Just as Mortmain had predicted, they were obviously flustered. It took much too long to defeat one creature, and they were pouring in steadily.

The screen looked to be from a surveillance camera situated in the top corner of a room. In the room itself was utter chaos. Just as Mortmain had predicted, they were obviously flustered. It took much too long to defeat one creature, and they were pouring in steadily.

Some of them were still shooting their guns, aiming for the chest and head. Others had taken out blades and were slashing the clockwork creatures. Most of them were covered with dents and holes and gashes with black liquid pouring out. But even those riddled with bullet holes were still advancing, and some of the decapitated still managed to attack.

Tessa could see how they were drastically outnumbered, and already people were dropping down, clutching a body part with red sticky fingers. She couldn't just watch them dying one by one, she had to do _something._

She looked closer at the image, inspecting the still automatons on the ground. There had to be something. Anything.

Tessa looked down to cover the small triumphant look that flashed on her face as she straightened up from the small laptop screen.

* * *

Jem looked back at Cecily's sleeping form and smiled. She was so terrified by Will's driving that she had decided to just close her eyes and sleep.

He turned back and looked at Will. His usually blue eyes were black with determination, yet there was a sort of burning light of anger behind them. His knuckles were white from gripping the steering wheel too hard.

But there was something about him that seemed... off. He wasn't just livid because of Tessa being taken away; he seemed infuriated by himself.

"Will," Jem began quietly.

"Yes?" he replied, his voice strained, and his eyes still focused on the road.

"What did you do tonight, Will?"

"What?" he asked incredulously, sneaking a glance at Jem from the corner of his eyes. "I was at the party, you were there too. Remember?"

"No, what did you _do_? You did something that you think is wrong, I can see it."

Will's face softened. "There's no use trying to hide anything from you, is there?" he asked, sighing. "It's my fault, Jem. It's my fault that she was taken."

"What do you mean?"

"I was with her out there in the balcony, and then I left her standing all alone. Not one minute later, I heard her scream," he explained melancholically. "If I had just stayed with her, she would be fine right now and-"

"You know that's not true, Will. They would've taken her anyway. They've probably been watching her for a while now, and no matter what, this was probably going to happen. So stop blaming yourself for everything, Will."

Will shook his head, but stayed silent. They drove like that for a few minutes, both pairs of eyes fixed on the road.

Finally, Jem filled the empty silence. "I know you love her, Will," he said quietly.

Will snapped his head toward Jem in surprise. "Jem-"

"Eyes on the road, Herondale."

He looked back to the road stretched out in front of him and paused before finally speaking up. "Of course I love her, Jem. She's one of my closest friends," he said with a stiff shrug.

"You know what I mean, Will. I mean, I've known it for quite a while now, but… what happened?"

"What do you mean? Nothing happened," Will replied.

"Exactly. _Nothing_ happened," Jem pointed out. He sighed and continued softly, "She loves you too, you know. I see it."

"I know, Jem!" Will yelled abruptly. He lowered his voice again. "I know. But she can't. She can't, Jem."

"And why not, William? Maybe you're just trying to hurt yourself, but can't you see that you're hurting her, too?"

* * *

"It seems that your friends are safe for now. Thank goodness, it would be a shame to have them all killed," he said with mock sadness. "I mean, there's William Herondale, the dashing young fighter who shares your passion in reading. There's his sister, Cecily Herondale, the artist with an apparently excellent fashion taste. James Carstairs, the kind-hearted silver-haired musical prodigy. And there are two more. Gabriel and Gideon… Lightwood, if I'm correct. Oh, there's another girl, but you're not very close with her. Oh what's her name? Jessamine? Yes, that's it. Did I miss anyone, Tessa?" he asked with a triumphant smirk.

Tessa stared at him with wide eyes. He knew everything about her, about _them_. How? Has he been spying on them for that long? She should probably just stay quiet. But her curiosity was too strong and it was hard to resist.

"How do you know all this?" Tessa blurted out.

Mortmain looked at her with exaggerated surprise. "Why, from _you_, my dear Tessa!"

Frustration began to boil inside her. "What are you talking about? I never told you anything about them! I've never even met you before tonight! You liar!"

He clucked his tongue. "My, my. Such strong language. No, you never did tell me personally. But I have someone else who tells me things like this that come straight from you. In fact, I believe he's right outside this door. It's just a small surprise for you," he said with a smile that made Tessa's skin crawl.

Mortmain pressed a button on his desk and the door was swiftly opened by The Dark Sisters, who have apparently been waiting outside the whole time.

Tessa's legs went weak under her and she held on to the table for support. No, it was impossible. It couldn't be.

In between The Dark Sisters, now entering through the door with easy strides, was none other than Nathaniel Gray.

* * *

**Hi! Sorry this took some time. It's been a hectic first week of school. Anyways, I hope there weren't too many mistakes and typos (please forgive me for any of these), and I hope you liked it! I've been trying to write this amidst everything else going on, and I had a lot planned for this chapter, hence the long-ish chapter.**

**Next chapter will be very... exciting. (hopefully).**

**Also, another reason for the delay is TWO EPISODES OF SHERLOCK SCDUAGFBAKSFALIAKFBSKFJBSA AHHHHHHHHHH I JUST CAN'T**

**Thank you for all the reviews, favorites, and follows! :)**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own anything mentioned above. The Infernal Devices and all its characters are Cassandra Clare's.**


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